UPDATED: SSS charges suspended CBN chief Emefiele to court – Official

The State Security Service (SSS) has announced that it has charged the suspended Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, to court.

SSS spokesperson Peter Afunanya, in a Thursday statement, said Mr Emefiele was charged in compliance with a court order.

PREMIUM TIMES reported how the Federal High Court in Abuja, on Thursday, ordered the SSS to charge Emefiele to court or release him from his detention, which has lasted for weeks.

Mr Afunanya’s statement, released hours after the court order, did not provide details of the charges against Mr Emefiele or the court where he was charged.

“Sequel to an Abuja High Court Order of today, 13th July 2023, the Department of State Services (DSS) has confirmed that Mr Godwin Emefiele has been charged to court in compliance with the Order,” Mr Afunanya wrote.

“In a statement, the Force public relations officer Peter Afunaya, recalls that the Service had, in 2022, applied for a Court Order to detain him in respect of a criminal investigation.

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“The statement notes that though Emefiele obtained a restraining order from an FCT High Court, the Service, however, arrested him in June 2023 on the strength of suspected fresh criminal infractions/information, one of which forms the basis for his current prosecution.

“The Service assures the public of professionalism, justice and fairness in handling this matter and indeed the discharge of its duties within the confines of the law,” the spokesperson wrote.

Emefiele’s Ordeals

Last December, the SSS approached the Federal High Court in Abuja seeking an order to arrest Mr Emefiele.

But Chief Judge John Tsoho, who presided over the court, refused to grant the request, stating insufficient information to justify issuing an arrest order against Mr Emefiele.

PREMIUM TIMES’ reported how the SSS accused Mr Emefiele of financing the activities of the banned Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and engaging in acts that undermined the Nigerian economy, along with other offences.

Mr Emefiele was later arrested at his residence in Lagos on 10 June. He was then taken to the headquarters of the secret police, where he is currently believed to be undergoing questioning.

While the SSS had previously accused the suspended CBN governor of terrorism financing, no formal charges have been officially filed against him. His arrest took place one day after President Bola Tinubu suspended him from office.