A High Court of the Federal Capital Territory in Maitama, Abuja, has declined a fresh application by the Department of State Services (DSS) to further detain Godwin Emefiele, the suspended governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for another 14 days.
The court, in a ruling that was delivered by Justice Hamza Muazu on Thursday, held that the application constituted an abuse of the judicial process.
The state security agency had in the application marked: FCT/HC/M/12105/2023, told the court that it uncovered a fresh evidence that would require it to further retain the suspended governor of the apex bank in its custody.
It prayed the court to allow it to hold Emefiele in custody for another 14 days, to give room for the conclusion of its ongoing investigation.
But when the case was called up for hearing, Justice Muazu asked the counsel that represented the agency, Mr. Victor Ejelonu, to address him on whether the court has the requisite jurisdiction to grant the application, in view of provisions of Sections 293 and 296 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act.
Justice Muazu noted that the said provisions vested exclusive rights of granting such application on the Magistrate Court.
Following the observation of the judge who maintained that the high court lacked the jurisdiction to grant the order, counsel to the DSS, Mr. Ejelonu, applied and withdrew it.
It will be recalled that operatives of the DSS had on June 10, stormed Emefiele’s Ikoyi residence in Lagos and arrested him.
The arrest came a day after Emefiele was suspended as the governor of the CBN by President Bola Tinubu.
The embattled CBN boss remained in custody until Wednesday when he was arraigned before the Federal High Court in Lagos on a two-count charge of illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition.
Meanwhile, upon his arraignment and plea of innocence, the court granted Emefiele bail to the tune of N20million with one surety in the like sum.
Trial Justice Nicolas Oweibo ordered that the defendant should be remanded in prison custody, pending the perfection of his bail conditions.
Not willing to comply with the court order, the DSS re-arrested Emefiele in the court premises, in an operation that led its operatives to violently manhandle a senior prison official.
