Godwin Emefiele, the embattled former governor of the central bank in Nigeria, was granted bail this Wednesday by a Nigerian high court. Emefiele is facing six counts of fraud and corruption charges.
The conditions for his release included a 300 million Naira bond and two sureties with properties in Abuja. This release came after a remarkable reduction in charges from an initial 20-count indictment alleging a 6.5 billion Naira fraud to the current six counts totaling 1.6 billion. Emefiele, in response to the charges, has pleaded not guilty.
During his nine-year tenure as the head of the bank, Emefiele faced criticism for a controversial monetary strategy – the implementation of multiple exchange rates aimed at artificially strengthening the local Naira currency. He was initially detained in June amid the appointment of Olayemi Cardoso as Central Bank Governor. This occurred during a time when the government called for a forensic audit of the central bank throughout a period of nationwide reforms.
In a surprising turn of events, despite being granted bail on firearms charges, which he denied, Emefiele was subsequently arrested on court premises by DSS officers in July.
Despite limitations imposed by the Nigerian constitution on the detention period of a suspect to a maximum of 48 hours, law enforcement agencies are often given leeway to extend this period with permission from a court of law. The judge handling Emefiele’s case has requested him to deposit his travel documents with the court and remain within the confines of Abuja as his case proceeds. Following his bail release, the commencement of his trial has been slated to November 28.