According to sources, the Department of State Services (DSS) has sent out its agents to search for the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor, Godwin Emefiele, and has ordered them to arrest him immediately.
According to People’s Gazette, two officials with knowledge of Emefiele’s case confirmed that the domestic intelligence office of the DSS had sent several officers to keep an eye on the CBN Headquarters, Emefiele’s family home in Lagos, and the businessman Christopher Emefiele’s Abuja residence, who is not related by blood.
The deployment was authorized by an assistant director of the Services, a DSS officer who chose to remain anonymous told Peoples Gazette, though the source was unable to clarify whether Director-General Yusuf Bichi had given his approval.
“We have different teams of at least two each monitoring those places. We don’t know if they have more people deployed to even more places, but we did not see any signal from the DG’s office to suggest his involvement at this point.” officer said.
As of Saturday morning, the officers continued to silently patrol the locations.
Emefiele reportedly disappeared after being informed that the DSS was actively threatening to arrest him.
Recall that earlier this month, DSS attempted to obtain a warrant from the Federal High Court without success. A federal judge concluded that there was insufficient probable cause to issue a warrant against a serving governor of the nation’s largest bank and its top financial regulator.
Emefiele was sought to be arrested by the DSS on charges of supporting terrorism and economic sabotage, among other heinous deeds, in an ex-parte application—an action brought without the participation of the defendant.
Justice John Tsoho, however, stated that the DSS’s application lacked sufficient support and decried the agency’s refusal to consult with him, saying “It consequently seems that the applicant seeks to use the court as a cover for an irregular operation, which is unacceptable.”
When the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) was informed of Emefiele’s disappearance from Nigeria, a group calling itself Concerned Citizens Of Conscience (CCC) appealed to Interpol seeking Emefiele’s immediate arrest and extradition to Nigeria.
In a letter dated December 23, 2022, the organization asked Interpol to apprehend and extradite Emefiele, who is now evading capture in the United States (USA)“in his bid to abscond from facing the wrath of the law”, come to Nigeria to face prosecution.
