Bamaiyi Meriga, a forensic expert on Thursday told the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Maitama, Abuja, that documents used to facilitate the withdrawal of $6.23 million from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) last year were forged.
The money was withdrawn purportedly to foreign election observers during the 2023 general elections.
Mr Mairiga testified at Thursday’s proceedings in the ongoing trial of former CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele, on whose watch the suspicious, humongous withdrawal was made.
The former CBN governor is being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on charges of fraud and corruption that he allegedly perpetrated while in office.
He denied the charges when he was rearraigned on amended 20 counts in January.
At the resumed hearing of the case on Thursday, Mr Meriga who testified as the fifth prosecution witness for the EFCC, said the signatures of then-President Muhammadu Buhari and then Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, were forged on the documents used to facilitate the $6.23 million withdrawal from the CBN on 8 February 2023.
While being led in evidence by the prosecuting lawyer, Rotimi Oyedepo, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Mr Meriga said after a forensic analysis of the disputed documents, he found out that there was clear evidence of forgery.
“The conclusion from the analysis revealed that the disputed documents showed evidence of forgery and copying act, as the pen movement, form and formation of the signature and the skill of execution were found to be different from that of the specimen signatures marked exhibits a to ‘A2’ and ‘B’ to ‘B2.’
“The formation of the disputed signature marked: ‘X’ and ‘B’ to ‘B1’ was found to be different in respect of pen movement impulses, skill of execution, loop formation, presence of tremors; there were individual characteristics.
“This is a confirmation that the author of the specimen signature marked ‘B’ to ‘B1’ did not write the signature of Muhammadu Buhari on a disputed document marked ‘X’.
“Also, the form and formation of the disputed signature marked ‘X1’ and the specimen signatures marked ‘A’ to ‘A2’ were also found to be different in respect of pen movement impulses, terminal strokes, loop formation, presence of tremors and individual characteristics.
“This is also a confirmation that the author of the specimen signatures, marked ‘A’ to ‘A2’ did not write the signature of Boss Mustapha on the disputed document marked ‘X1,” Mr Mairiga explained.
Mr Mairiga said he later issued a report of his findings about what transpired.
Cross-examination
Under cross-examination by defence lawyer, Matthew Burkaa, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), the witness said he was not a staff member of the EFCC but on secondment from the Nigerian Immigration Service.
The forensic expert said he did not work on Mr Emefiele’s signature.
He added that the seal of execution was different from the original copy.
Mr Oyedepo presented the two documents on ‘Presidential Directive on Foreign Observer Election’ and the court admitted them in evidence after a no-objection from the defence lawyer.
After the cross-examination, the judge adjourned the trial until 11 March.
Background
Mr Emefiele is charged with amended 20 counts of conferring undue advantage, and breach of trust, among other allegations.
Some of the allegations feature in the report of special investigators engaged by President Bola Tinubu to probe the activities of CBN during Mr Emefiele’s tenure as the governor of the bank.
The special investigator, Jim Obazee, referenced the $6.23 million payment in his report which received wide media attention last December.
He wrote of a “fraudulent cash withdrawal of $6.23 million” – about N2.9 billion at the then-official exchange rate of N461 to a dollar.
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Mr Obaeze said the $6.23 million was removed from the vault of the CBN between 7 and 8 February 2023, about two weeks before the presidential and National Assembly polls, based on a purported approval of the president for payments to foreign election observers.
The removal of the money from the vault of the Foreign Payment Office, Abuja Branch of the CBN, which was captured on CCTV footage, followed a trail of letters which began with one dated 23 January 2023.
Earlier testifying as a prosecution witness in February, a former Branch Controller of CBN, Onyeka Ogbu, had said the cash withdrawal purportedly meant for an election observation mission for the 2023 general elections had Messrs Buhari and Mustapha’s authorisation.
The testimony piqued curiosity when he said the money was only paid to someone identified as an official of the SGF office on 8 April 2023, after the general elections had ended.
Mr Mustapaha, the then SGF, also appeared in the case as a prosecution witness in February, denying that he or Mr Buhari, the president at the time, issued any letter of authorisation for the payment.
Charges
In some of the counts, EFCC alleged that Mr Emefiele, in January 2023, forged a document titled, ‘Re: Presidential Directive on Foreign Election Observer Missions,’ dated January 2023 with reference number, SGF.43/L.01/201.
The EFCC alleged that Mr Emefiele made the claim knowing the same to be false.
In the case marked CR/577/2023, the prosecution alleged Mr Emefiele, on 8 February 2023, connived with one Odoh Ocheme, said to be on the run, to obtain $6.2 million from the CBN, claiming that it was requested by the office of the Secretary to the Governor of the Federation (SGF) “vide a letter dated Jan. 26 2023 with Ref No. SGF.43/L.01/201.”
The anti-graft agency also alleged that “the contract for the renovation of the CBN Governor’s lodge, located at No. 2 Glover Road, Ikoyi, Lagos, was awarded to a company named Messrs. Architekon Nigeria Ltd, “wherein the duo are directors and majority shareholders.”
The offences, according to the EFCC, contravene the provisions of sections 17 and 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000, as well as sections 315, 363 and 364 of the Penal Code.
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