Justice Rahman Oshodi of the Lagos Special Offences Court, Ikeja, has dismissed an application filed by embattled former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, challenging the court’s jurisdiction over his case.

The trial judge dismissed the application on Wednesday in his ruling, holding that the prosecutor had established territorial jurisdiction on counts 8 to 26 with various facts in the proof of evidence attached to the case file before the court.

The judge also agreed with Emefiele that the court doesn’t have jurisdiction over counts one to seven and, therefore, dismissed the charges.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had arraigned Emefiele on 26 counts, where he was alleged to have misused his office, resulting in a loss of $4.5 billion and N2.8 billion.

Meanwhile, his co-defendant, Henry Omoile, is standing trial for related charges, including the unlawful acceptance of gifts.

However, Emefiele’s counsel, Mr. Olalekan Ojo (SAN), had argued that the court lacked jurisdiction to hear the case in Lagos. He claimed that the alleged offences, including abuse of office, fell outside the territorial reach of the Lagos Special Offences Court.

Ojo had contended that the charges violated Section 36(12) of the Nigerian Constitution, asserting that the actions Emefiele is alleged to have committed were not legally recognized offences.

He also emphasized that since the Lagos State House of Assembly does not have legislative authority over matters on the Exclusive Legislative List, Section 73 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2011, under which counts one to four were filed, cannot apply extraterritorially to any alleged abuse of office by Emefiele.

Ojo further argued that a court’s territorial jurisdiction refers to the geographical area within which its authority can be exercised; therefore, outside this area, the court cannot act.

He submitted that the court should strike out counts one to four of the 18 amended charges filed by the EFCC on April 4, 2024, on the basis that the alleged offences took place outside the court’s jurisdiction.

But the EFCC counsel, Mr. Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), had told the court that the court had the authority to hear the case. Oyedepo argued that the alleged crimes were economic and financial in nature, which fall within the EFCC’s jurisdiction, and that there was substantial evidence supporting Lagos as the appropriate venue for the trial.

He asserted that the subject matter of the charges clearly fell within the court’s jurisdiction since the offences were committed within its territorial reach.

The anti-graft counsel further argued that evidence and witness testimonies pointed to Lagos as the proper location for the trial and that the objections raised by Emefiele’s legal team were not supported by the facts or evidence.

Justice Oshodi has therefore fixed further trial in the suit to February 24 and 26, 2025.