Justice Rahman Oshodi, in his ruling, overruled the objections of the defence and admitted the documents as Exhibit G, while the prosecution continued its presentation of evidence.
During Thursday’s proceedings, prosecuting counsel Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN) resumed the examination of Alvan Gurumnaan, an operative of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), who detailed findings from the commission’s investigation.
Gurumnaan read from a WhatsApp conversation tendered as part of Exhibit G, in which a man identified as Henry instructed John Adetola to deliver $400,000 to “Oga” and “talk to him on WhatsApp if possible.”
“John Adetola confirmed that he went to Lekki in Lagos, where he met Ayo, the personal assistant to the CBN governor, to deliver the money,” Gurumnaan told the court. “He said he later proceeded to the CBN office in Lagos, where he handed the $400,000 directly to Emefiele.”
According to the witness, Ayo — a CBN staff member — admitted during interrogation that Adetola visited his residence and gave him money meant for the first defendant. Ayo also confessed to delivering another $200,000 to Emefiele on a separate occasion.
Gurumnaan further testified that Victor Oyedua, a CBN contractor, corroborated the transactions, stating that he gave Ayo a total of $600,000 in two installments to facilitate the release of delayed contract payments.
The prosecution also tendered a new bundle of documents obtained from the CBN, including an original letter from a company to the EFCC dated February 24, 2024. Oyedepo described them as public records obtained directly during the investigation and urged the court to admit them as Exhibit H.
However, defence counsel Olalekan Ojo (SAN) and Kazeem Gbadamosi (SAN) objected, arguing that the documents were uncertified photocopies and failed to meet the requirements for admissible evidence. Justice Oshodi overruled the objection and admitted them as Exhibit H.
The court also admitted Adetola’s MI 10T mobile phone as Exhibit I, after it was tendered by the prosecution. The device contained WhatsApp messages analyzed by EFCC forensic experts.
When the prosecution sought to tender the defendants’ statements, the defence objected, alleging that they were obtained under duress. Justice Oshodi subsequently ordered a trial-within-trial to determine the voluntariness of the confessions.
He directed both parties to reconvene on November 21, 2025, for a report on the forensic examination of the documents and devices, and adjourned the case to December 2 and 3, 2025, for the mini-trial.
