A defence witness, Nnamdi Offial, on Thursday told the Special Offences Court in Ikeja that officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission attempted to coerce his client, Henry Omoile, into implicating former Central Bank Governor Godwin Emefiele.
Offial, who represents Omoile the second defendant in the ongoing $4.5bn and N2.8m fraud trial of Emefiele made the allegation while testifying in a trial-within-a-trial ordered by Justice Rahman Oshodi to determine whether Omoile’s statement to the EFCC was given voluntarily.
He alleged that EFCC investigators offered inducements, including the promise of bail and possible non-prosecution, if Omoile agreed to provide incriminating evidence against Emefiele.
Emefiele and Omoile are facing charges relating to accepting gratification, receiving gifts through agents, corruption, and fraudulent receipt of property.
The EFCC also accused them of conferring corrupt advantages on associates, contrary to the Corrupt Practices Act 2000. Both men have pleaded not guilty.
At the resumed hearing on Thursday, Offial testified that the head of the EFCC interrogation team assured Omoile that cooperation would earn him leniency.
He further alleged that investigators conducted the interrogation in a restrictive question-and-answer format, refusing to allow Omoile to write responses that did not align with their expectations.
“On several occasions, questions were put to the second defendant and he answered, but he was not allowed to write them down because the answers did not conform to what the interrogators wanted him to say. I objected to this many times,” Offial said.
He recounted that after the session of February 26, 2024, officers informed him they would continue to detain Omoile.
The following day, he found his client being interrogated without his presence and challenged the process.
Offial said an officer identified as David confronted him over his intervention, leading to a showdown in which he was escorted out of the premises.
“I reported the incident to the team leader, who asked me to remain in the waiting area,” he said.
He added that he could not access Omoile again until about 8pm, when officers returned him to the detention facility.
“Later, I was told that he had refused to cooperate with them and that they were not going to release him. That was when I applied for bail from the EFCC zonal head,” Offial said.
He disclosed that EFCC detained Omoile for 21 days, prompting him to file a fundamental rights enforcement suit at the Federal High Court, Lagos.
According to Offial, Justice Muslim Hamza granted bail but ordered that Omoile be remanded at the Ikoyi Correctional Centre pending the perfection of bail conditions.
During cross-examination, EFCC prosecutor, Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), elicited several admissions from the witness.
Offial confirmed that investigators cautioned Omoile in his presence and that Omoile signed the caution.
He also admitted that he participated in the statement-taking process and understood that anything written could be used against his client in court.
When asked whether he reported the alleged misconduct or filed a petition against the EFCC, Offial said he did not.
