The Department of State Services is likely to approach the court on Tuesday to obtain an order to keep the suspended governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, in its custody for as long as his interrogation will last.
A source in the DSS told journalists 4 that the secret police would likely approach the court to obtain an order to detain the suspended CBN boss for an indefinite period to allow for unfettered interrogation.
President Bola Tinubu had on Friday suspended Emefiele from office with immediate effect.
This was sequel to the ongoing investigation of his office and the planned reforms in the financial sector of the economy, according to a statement by the Director of Information, Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Willie Bassey.
According to the statement, Emefiele was directed to immediately hand over the affairs of his office to the Deputy Governor (Operations Directorate), Mr Folashodun Adebisi Shonubi, who will act as the CBN governor pending the conclusion of the investigation and the reforms.
The suspended apex bank boss was arrested in Lagos on Saturday by DSS operatives and flown to Abuja in a private jet.
A viral video showed the suspended apex bank boss driven to the tarmac in an unmarked Hilux van accompanied by security agents. After disembarking from the vehicle, he was escorted into a waiting plane where security operatives were waiting to receive him. One of the operatives, who closely followed Emefiele, had in his hands a pair of handcuffs.
The source stated, “He (Emefiele) is going to be with us for some time. We may obtain a court order to further detain him. The previous charges against him are there and further investigations may add to that. You know that he is a big man, and we have to make sure that the loose ends are tightened before we take him to court.
“Recall that we were looking for him before his suspension. Now that we have him, we will hear from him; hear what he has to say on those issues we have highlighted before.”
Indications also emerged on Saturday that the DSS might conduct a search on the residence and office of the suspended apex bank governor as part of its investigation.
Another source in the secret police said, “He (Emefiele) has been on the watch list of the service for long, now that he has been arrested, he will be spending the night in custody at our headquarters and may not be released anytime soon. There is also the likelihood of his residence and office being searched in furtherance of the service’s investigation.”
Sunday PUNCH reports that the DSS had been on the trail of the suspended CBN governor and had even approached a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory to arrest him.
But Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice John Tsoho, said the secret police did not provide any concrete evidence to substantiate its claims that Emefiele was involved in terrorism financing and economic crimes
