J ustice Rahman Oshodi of a Special Offences Court in Ikeja has granted the application of a former Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, to engage forensic experts to examine WhatsApp conversations and a mobile device marked “iPhone 2” that were tendered as evidence in his ongoing trial over alleged fraud.
Emefiele is facing a 19-count charge alongside one, Henry Omoile, over alleged abuse of office, receiving gratification, accepting gifts through agents, corruption, and fraudulent property transactions involving $4.5 billion and N2.8 billion.
The charge was filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). Emefiele’s lawyer, Olalekan Ojo (SAN), had through an application asked the court to allow an independent forensic expert to inspect the phone and verify the authenticity of the extracted WhatsApp messages presented as exhibits.
“The defence is seeking the leave of the court to call a forensic expert to examine both the mobile device and printed conversations allegedly linked to the defendants”, Ojo said. Responding, EFCC’s lawyer, C. C. Okezie, opposed the request, arguing that exhibits admitted during trial are in the custody of the court and must remain in their original form until the case is concluded.
She also expressed concern that the defence had not disclosed the name of the forensic laboratory or the qualifications of the personnel who would handle the device. Okezie urged the court to appoint the EFCC’s Director of Forensic Department to select the laboratory, ensure the exercise is monitored by a prosecutionnominated representative, and maintain a strict chain of custody.
In his ruling on the contentious application yesterday, Justice Oshodi held that the defence had the right to conduct an independent forensic review, provided safeguards were in place to protect the integrity of the evidence. He ordered that the inspection be conducted in the presence of representatives of all parties, with each party allowed no more than one lawyer and one forensic expert of their own choice.
