The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has told the Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja, Lagos, that the second defendant, Henry Omoile, did not make his statements under duress in the ongoing trial of former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Godwin Emefiele over an alleged $4.5bn fraud.
Emefiele is facing a 19-count bordering on receiving gratification and corrupt demands, while his co-defendant, Omoile, faces a three-count charge relating to the unlawful acceptance of gifts by an agent. Both defendants have pleaded not guilty.
At the resumed proceedings yesterday, the prosecution witness, Alvan Gurumnaan, while testifying in a trial-within-trial, said EFCC operatives are trained professionals who do not extract statements by threat, violence, or intimidation.
“The second defendant did not make any statement under duress. Our officers do not force statements through violence.”
Gurumnaan admitted that there was no video recording of the defendant’s statement. According to him, it is the responsibility of the defendant to prove duress where such an allegation is made.
At the last sitting on 9 October 2025, prosecuting counsel Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN) sought to tender Omoile’s extra-judicial statements as evidence but was opposed by the second defence counsel, Adeyinka Kotoye (SAN), who insisted the statements were not voluntary.
Justice Oshodi consequently ordered a trial-within-trial to determine the voluntariness of the statements.
Gurumnaan, an EFCC operative now based in Abuja but formerly in the Special Operations Unit of Lagos Zonal Command 1, narrated how Omoile made his statements at the Commission’s conference room, located on the first floor of Block A, EFCC Lagos Directorate 1, Awolowo Road, Ikoyi.
He described the setting as an open, spacious conference room used by the Special Operations Team.
The witness said he was surprised that Omoile later objected to the statements because he appeared at the EFCC office on 26 February 2024 with the Acting MD of Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System Plc (NIBSS) and his lawyer, Mr E. N. Offiong.
“EFCC operatives are trained to take statements without threat or duress. The statements were taken openly. There is no way we could have done that under threat,” he said.
The court admitted four statements as Exhibits 1 to 4 in the mini trial. Three were taken on 26 February 2024, and one on 27 February 2024. The witness confirmed that Omoile was in custody when he made them.
He added that the standard practice is to caution suspects before taking statements. “The cautionary words were administered by Mr Azeez Ajigbotosho, a member of my team. The statements were signed by the second defendant. He wrote, ‘I am making this statement in the presence of my lawyer, Offiong,’” he said.
Although one of the statements did not expressly reflect the presence of the lawyer, the witness maintained that Barrister Offiong was present on both days and tendered the EFCC visitors’ register as evidence.
Under cross-examination by defence counsel Olalekan Ojo (SAN) and Kotoye Adeyinka (SAN), Gurumnaan admitted that there was no video recording of the defendant’s statement, despite it being part of EFCC’s standard procedure. He explained that certain circumstances sometimes make video recordings impossible.
He told the court that he and his team attended to the second defendant.
After cross-examination by both defence teams, Justice Oshodi adjourned the continuation of the trial-within-trial to Thursday, 15 January, and Friday, 16 January 2026.
