A defence witness, Nnamdi Offial, on Thursday told the Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja that officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) attempted to coerce his client, Henry Omoile, into implicating former Central Bank of Nigeria governor, Godwin Emefiele.
Offial, who is counsel to Omoile, the second defendant in the ongoing $4.5 billion and ₦2.8 billion fraud trial involving Emefiele made the allegation while testifying in a trial-within-trial ordered by Justice Rahman Oshodi to determine whether Omoile’s statement to the EFCC was made voluntarily.
He alleged that EFCC investigators offered inducements, including promises of bail and possible non-prosecution, in exchange for incriminating evidence against Emefiele.
Emefiele and Omoile are standing trial on charges bordering on gratification, receipt of gifts through agents, corruption, and fraudulent receipt of property. The EFCC also accuses them of conferring corrupt advantages on associates, contrary to the Corrupt Practices Act 2000. Both defendants have pleaded not guilty.
At the resumed hearing, Offial told the court that the head of the EFCC interrogation team assured Omoile that cooperation would result in leniency. He further alleged that investigators conducted the interrogation in a restrictive question-and-answer format, preventing Omoile from recording responses that did not align with their expectations.
“On several occasions, questions were put to the second defendant and he answered them, but he was not allowed to write those answers down because they did not conform to what the interrogators wanted him to say. I objected several times,” Offial testified.
He said that after the interrogation session of February 26, 2024, EFCC officers informed him that Omoile would remain in custody. According to him, the following day he discovered that his client was being interrogated in his absence, prompting him to challenge the process.
Offial told the court that an officer identified as David confronted him over his intervention, resulting in a disagreement that led to his being escorted out of the EFCC premises.
“I reported the incident to the team leader, who instructed me to remain in the waiting area,” he said.
He added that he did not regain access to his client until about 8pm, when Omoile was returned to the detention facility.
“Later, I was told that he had refused to cooperate and that they would not release him. That was when I applied for bail from the EFCC zonal head,” Offial said.
He disclosed that Omoile was detained for 21 days, prompting him to institute a fundamental rights enforcement suit at the Federal High Court in Lagos.
According to Offial, Justice Muslim Hamza granted bail but ordered that Omoile be remanded at the Ikoyi Correctional Centre pending the perfection of the bail conditions.
During cross-examination, EFCC counsel, 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 was aware that any statement made 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. He further acknowledged that the judge in the fundamental rights suit did not indict the EFCC for any misconduct and that his client was not harassed in his presence.
Justice Oshodi adjourned the matter to January 16, 2026, for the continuation of the trial-within-trial.
