An Abuja High Court has voided the arrest and detention of suspended Central Bank Governor Godwin Emefiele by the Department of State Services (DSS).
Justice Bello Kawu ruled that the arrest and detention of Emefiele was in violation of a subsisting judgment and orders of another court.
In December 2022, Justice M. A. Hassan had granted an order restraining the DSS from arresting or detaining Emefiele in connection with allegations of terrorism financing, fraudulent practices, money laundering, and threat to national security.
Emefiele’s lawyer, Peter Abang, argued that the DSS’s arrest and detention of his client was illegal and a nullity in view of the subsisting judgment by another court.
Justice Kawu agreed with Abang and ordered the DSS to release Emefiele from detention. He also ordered the DSS to refrain from arresting or detaining Emefiele in the future.
The court’s ruling is a major victory for Emefiele, who has been under investigation by the DSS for several months. The ruling also raises questions about the DSS’s conduct in the case.
The DSS has not yet commented on the court’s ruling.
