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How I Collected Dollars In Cash For Emefiele, Dispatch Rider Tells Court

Published

2 years ago

April 13, 2024

Editor

…explains how he picked up $1m, $850,000, $750,000, $400,000 for ex-CBN gov

…says Emefiele never rewarded him, case adjourned to April 29

A dispatch rider, Monday Osazuwa, on Friday, narrated to the Special Offences Court in Lagos how the embattled former Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, Godwin Emefiele, instructed him on different occasions to collect the sum of $3m cash in tranches.

Osazuwa, who was led in evidence in chief by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), told the court that he had been a dispatch rider at Zenith Bank since 2001, before joining the CBN as a contract staff member in 2014.

The witness said Emefiele was the Managing Director of Zenith Bank while he worked there as a dispatch rider.

According to Osazuwa, he knew Emefiele, who was his boss while in Zenith Bank, before he later joined him in the CBN.

The witness, who testified before Justice Raman Oshodi, said he was later appointed as a senior supervisor (full-time) in charge of recording and filing documents while working in the CBN Governor’s office in Lagos.

Osazuwa said, “I was still working in the governor’s office when I was appointed a full-time staff member, and we usually communicated through WhatsApp and email.

“I performed as a senior supervisor, recording and filing with other official roles.

“I could recall that, in 2020, when he was outside Lagos, Emefiele called me and gave me a number that a man had something I would collect from him, and that the man would give me the number of another person.

“When I got to the man’s office, I was given an envelope. I counted the money (in it), and was told to give it to my boss.”

The witness further told the court that Emefiele usually collected money alone whenever he was in Lagos.

According to him, any time the defendant was not around, Emefiele would tell him (Osazuwa) to give the money to the second defendant, Henry Omoile.

Osazuwa added that Emefiele sent him to MINL Limited when he was with Zenith Bank.

He added, “This company is situated at Isolo. The first defendant(Emefiele) do send me to collect cheques from the company from Mr. Monday, and when I collect the cheque from Mr. Monday, I would give it back to Emefiele, and he would lodge the money into the account of Dummies Oil and Gas.”

Osazuwa further stated that Emefiele’s co-defendant, Henry Isioma-Omoile, lived in the residence of the former CBN governor.

He stated that when he collected money for his boss (Emefiele), he would take it to his residence at Iru Close, Ikoyi, Lagos.

“Whenever I received the money and took it to my boss’ residence, Mr Emefiele would tell me to give it to the second defendant (Omoile) whenever he was not home.

“I did not keep a record of the transactions, because he instructed me that I should collect the money and bring it to his house.

“The highest amount I collected was $1m, all in cash. Some weeks later, the businessman also called me, and I collected $850,000, $750,000, and $400,000 in cash in different tranches.

“I have never been rewarded, paid, or given anything. I was doing it out of faithfulness, and he knows it, but he never for once said, ‘Take this’,” the witness said.

While being cross-examined by the defence counsel, Mr. Abdulakeem Labi-Lawal, the witness confirmed to the court that he had been working with the defendant since 2002.

Earlier, Justice Oshodi had granted Emefiele bail in the sum of N50m.

He is being tried for alleged abuse of office and fraud to the tune of $4.5bn and N2.8bn.

The judge admitted Emefiele to N50m bail with two sureties in like sum.

He held that the sureties must be gainfully employed and have three years of tax payment with the Lagos State Government.

Oshodi also said that the sureties must show proper identification and be registered in the Lagos State Bail Management System.

The judge also said that he was satisfied with the bail conditions of N1m earlier granted to Emefiele’s co-defendant, Henry Isioma-Omoil, who is standing trial in another charge before Justice Olufunke Sule-Hamzat of the Yaba High Court.

Oshodi, however, said that the bail documents must be transferred to the Special Offences Court and registered in the Lagos State Bail Management System.

The EFCC arraigned Emefiele on Monday, April 8, on 23 counts bordering on abuse of office, accepting gratifications, corrupt demand, receiving property fraudulently obtained, and conferring corrupt advantage, while his co-defendant was arraigned on three counts bordering on acceptance of a gift by agents.

The defendants, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge.

Justice Oshodi also refused an oral application for adjournment, which was moved twice by defence counsel, Labi-Lawal, to cross-examine the witness.

The judge adjourned the case till April 29, 2024, for trial and the hearing of an application for a closed section.
PUNCH

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US Revokes Visas Of Foreigners Who Mocked Kirk’s Assassination

Published

6 hours ago

October 15, 2025

Editor

The United States has revoked the visas of several foreign nationals who publicly mocked or celebrated the killing of American conservative activist Charlie Kirk, officials confirmed on Tuesday.

The State Department said the decision followed an internal review of social media posts deemed “offensive and contrary to U.S. values,” adding that the country “has no obligation to host foreigners who wish death on Americans.”

Kirk, 31, co-founder of the conservative youth group Turning Point USA and a strong ally of former President Donald Trump, was shot dead during a political rally on 10 September.

His killing drew widespread condemnation across the political spectrum, with many describing the act as a targeted attack on free speech.

According to U.S. authorities, at least six individuals from Argentina, South Africa, Brazil, Paraguay, Mexico, and Germany had their visas revoked after making comments online that celebrated Kirk’s murder or insulted his supporters.

Examples cited by officials included posts calling Kirk a racist who deserved it, and messages mocking grieving Americans.

“We will not tolerate foreigners who promote or celebrate acts of violence against U.S. citizens,” a State Department spokesperson said.

The move underscores Washington’s growing use of immigration powers to respond to online behaviour perceived as threatening or disrespectful towards the country.

The Department said it continues to monitor social media content for evidence of incitement or endorsement of violence.
Civil liberties advocates, however, have questioned the decision, arguing that revoking visas for social media comments could set a worrying precedent.

Officials maintained that the visa cancellations were lawful, limited in scope, and aimed at protecting national integrity.

“Freedom of speech does not extend to foreigners seeking the privilege of entry while glorifying violence,” the spokesperson added.

The United States has increased visa scrutiny in recent years, requiring applicants to disclose social media handles and online activity.

The policy, officials say, is designed to prevent extremist sympathisers or those expressing hostility towards the country from entering its borders

Headline

Israeli PM Netanyahu Back In Court For Graft Trial

Published

8 hours ago

October 15, 2025

Editor

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was back in a Tel Aviv court on Wednesday for the latest hearing in his long-running corruption trial, which opened in May 2020.

The prime minister kept a smiling face as he and his entourage of several ministers from his conservative Likud party were heckled by protesters en route to the tribunal.

It comes after US President Donald Trump suggested on Monday that the Israeli premier should be pardoned in his three separate corruption cases.

His latest appearance at the Tel Aviv court also follows the return of the hostages taken by Hamas as part of Trump’s US-brokered plan to end the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

In one case, Netanyahu and his wife, Sara, are accused of accepting more than $260,000 worth of luxury goods, including champagne, cigars and jewellery, from billionaires in exchange for political favours.

In two other instances, Netanyahu is also charged with attempting to negotiate better press coverage from two Israeli media outlets. He has denied any wrongdoing, claiming to be the victim of a political plot.

During his current term, which started in late 2022, Netanyahu has proposed far-reaching judicial reforms that critics say sought to weaken the courts.

Those prompted massive protests that only abated after the onset of the Gaza war, sparked by Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.

In an address on Monday to the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, Trump told the chamber that Netanyahu should receive a pardon in the graft cases.

“Cigars and champagne, who the hell cares about that?” Trump joked, before asking his Israeli counterpart Isaac Herzog: “Why don’t you give him a pardon?”

The Israeli premier is also subject to an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) on suspicion of ordering war crimes in his government’s assault on Hamas militants in Gaza.

Netanyahu holds the record for the most years spent at the head of Israel’s government, having served 18 years in several stints as premier since 1996.

AFP

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FULL LIST: US Set To Carry Out Four Executions This Week

Published

9 hours ago

October 15, 2025

Editor

A Florida man convicted of murdering two women he hired for sex was put to death by lethal injection on Tuesday, one of four executions to be carried out in the United States this week.

Samuel Smithers, 72, was sentenced to death in 1999 for the 1996 killings of Christy Cowan and Denise Roach in Tampa. They had been beaten and strangled and their bodies were found in a pond.

Smithers was executed at a Florida state prison at 6:15 pm (2215 GMT), the 14th execution in the southern state this year.

Another convicted murderer was also put to death by lethal injection in the midwestern state of Missouri on Tuesday.

The execution of Lance Shockley, 48, was carried out at 6:13 pm (2313 GMT) for the 2005 murder of a police sergeant, Carl Graham.

Graham was gunned down in an ambush at his home. The officer had been investigating a fatal car accident involving Shockley at the time.

Shockley maintained his innocence but his appeals were rejected by numerous courts, including the Supreme Court. Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe rejected his clemency request on Monday.

Two other executions are scheduled this week.

Charles Crawford, 59, is to be put to death by lethal injection in Mississippi on Wednesday for the 1994 rape and murder of Kristy Ray, a 20-year-old college student.

Richard Djerf, 55, is to be executed by lethal injection in Arizona on Friday for the brutal 1993 murders of four members of a Phoenix family.

In a letter last month apologizing for the crime, Djerf said he was ready to die and would not seek clemency.

“If I can’t find reason to spare my life, what reason would anyone else have?” he wrote.

There have been 37 executions in the United States this year, the most since 2013, when 39 inmates were put to death.

Florida has carried out the most executions with 14, followed by Texas with five and South Carolina and Alabama with four.

Thirty-one of this year’s executions have been carried out by lethal injection, two by firing squad and four by nitrogen hypoxia, which involves pumping nitrogen gas into a face mask, causing the prisoner to suffocate.

The use of nitrogen gas as a method of capital punishment has been denounced by United Nations experts as cruel and inhumane.

The death penalty has been abolished in 23 of the 50 US states, while three others — California, Oregon and Pennsylvania — have moratoriums in place.

President Donald Trump is a proponent of capital punishment and, on his first day in office, called for an expansion of its use “for the vilest crimes.”