Oyo-Ita, Emefiele Trials: EFCC Continues Pursuit of Alleged Multi-Billion-Naira High-profile Frauds Cases

As the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) continues to unravel complex financial crimes involving top officials, the Federal High Court, Maitama, Abuja, on Wednesday becomes a battleground for legal firework for the resumed trial of former Head of Service Winifred Oyo-Ita, who vehemently denies coercion in her ₦3 billion fraud case, to the probe into former CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele’s alleged misappropriation of over N7.8 billion through intricate bank transactions.

The trial of former Head of Service of the Federation, Winifred Oyo-Ita, before Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court, Maitama, Abuja, continued on Tuesday, January 20, 2026, with the First Prosecution Witness, Hamma Adama Bello testifying with video evidence in a trial-within-trial that the defendant wrote her statements voluntarily and under caution in the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.

The witness, an operative of the EFCC, testified as the prosecution sought to establish the voluntariness of the statements Oyo-Ita made to the Commission during investigations, which the defendant, midstream into her trial, swung round to claim that they were obtained from her under duress, prompting the trial-within-trial to determine their admissibility.

Led in evidence by prosecution counsel, H. M. Mohammed, the witness, told the court that Oyo-Ita, the first defendant wrote her statements freely and without any form of intimidation, harassment, or coercion while in the EFCC.

With the permission of the court, the prosecution played the video recording of the statement-taking process in court, in which the witness identified himself, another EFCC officer, Rukkayya, and the first defendant. The witness pointed out that the first defendant, as could be seen in the video, was calm and relaxed, and showing no signs of stress. He further explained that before the defendant wrote her statement, she was duly cautioned and informed of her right to have her lawyer present. And was also told that she could stop writing until her lawyer arrived or invite her lawyer to witness the process.

The video recording was admitted in evidence without defence counsel’s objection.

During cross-examination, counsel to the first, second and third defendants, Michael Olawale, questioned the witness on whether Oyo-Ita was granted bail and the identity of her surety, to which the witness said he could not immediately recall whom the surety was, but would remember when shown the case file.

Counsel to the 7th defendant, Okechukwu Ajanwa, SAN, also questioned the witness on whether he interviewed the 7th defendant, Ugbong Okon Effiok. Bello answered in the affirmative but explained that he could not recall why there was no video recording of that interview, noting that he was not the only member of the investigative team.

With no further questions from the defence and no re-examination by the prosecution, Justice Omotosho discharged the witness from the dock.

Counsel to the first defendant subsequently applied for an adjournment to enable the defence to open its case in the trial-within-trial.

Justice Omotosho adjourned the matter till Wednesday, January 21, 2026, for continuation of the trial-within-trial.

Oyo-Ita is standing trial alongside her special assistants Garba Umar (4th defendant), Ugbong Okon Effiok (7th defendant) and six companies: Frontline Ace Global Services Limited, Asanaya Projects Limited, Slopes International Limited, U and U Global Services Ltd, Prince Mega Logistics Ltd, and Good Deal Investments. They are facing an 18-count charge bordering on misappropriation of funds, official corruption, money laundering, and criminal diversion of funds to the tune of over ₦3 billion.

Meanwhile, at the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court, Maitama, Abuja, the trial of former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, continued before Justice Yusuf Halilu, with prosecution witnesses narrating how over N1.6 billion was allegedly disbursed on the former CBN governor’s instruction through complex cash movements and bank transactions.

Emefiele is being prosecuted by the EFCC on an eight-count charge bordering on criminal breach of trust, conspiracy, forgery and unlawful possession of properties suspected to be proceeds of crime to the tune of N7.83 billion.

Led in evidence by prosecution counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), Prosecution Witness 3 (PW3), Richard Agulu, a former Zenith Bank staff member now with the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), told the court that while working at Zenith Bank between 2007 and 2023, he handled cash transactions allegedly linked to Emefiele through the latter’s personal assistant, Eric Ocheme.

Agulu testified that, on Emefiele’s instruction conveyed through Ocheme, he received and disbursed large sums of cash, some of which were warehoused in the bank’s vault or deposited into third-party accounts rather than Emefiele’s personal account.

He identified accounts belonging to Ifeabigo Integrated Services and Kelvito Integrated Services as channels through which funds were moved between 2020 and 2022, detailing multiple cash lodgements and transfers amounting to hundreds of millions of naira.

According to PW3, on August 25, 2021, alone, he transferred N600 million and N300 million from the Ifeabigo Integrated Services account, as well as N700 million from the Kelvito Integrated Services account, to MG Properties Limited, bringing the total transferred on that day to N1.6 billion.

“In total, I transferred N1.6 billion to MG Properties Limited on the defendant’s instruction through Mr Eric,” he told the court, adding that he did not know the purpose of the payments at the time.

PW3 further narrated structured cash withdrawals, including multiple withdrawals of N10 million each, which he said were picked up by Ocheme on behalf of the defendant.

Under cross-examination, the witness acknowledged that only account holders or authorised signatories could approve withdrawals and confirmed that the relevant account owners authenticated the transactions.

Earlier, the prosecution also presented Prosecution Witness 2 (PW2), Olomotam Egoro, a compliance officer with Access Bank, who testified on the EFCC’s request for account records relating to Ace Frozen Foods Ventures. He confirmed that the defendant’s name did not appear in the bank documents submitted to the EFCC.