OGUN, Nigeria(VOICE OF NAIJA)- About 85 corporate organizations and private individuals have received letters from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission(EFCC) regarding an ongoing investigation into alleged fraudulent foreign exchange allocations made by the troubled former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele.
It was gathered that Emefiele might be subject to a revised charge to reflect fresh information from his investigation into the forex transactions that are still under investigation.
The senior officials of the affected entities has also been summoned by the anti-graft agency and mandated them to provide detailed documents of their foreign exchange transactions covering the last nine years.
Although details of the 85 other companies affected by the ongoing investigation are yet to be verified, however, the Dangote Group and BUA Plc top the list as gathered by Punch on Saturday.
A top EFCC source revealed that the commission’s investigation was comprehensive, deeper, and encompassing, and independent of the report of the special investigator appointed by President Bola Tinubu to probe the CBN, Jim Obazee.
Sunday PUNCH disclosed that Emefiele would face fresh charges by the EFCC over the ongoing foreign exchange probe.
The EFCC’s agents raided the Dangote Industries Limited headquarters in Ikoyi, Lagos, on Thursday, and the BUA Towers, situated at PC 32, Churchgate Street, Victoria Island, Lagos State. This action was taken as part of the investigation into the alleged misuse of Emefiele’s foreign exchange allocations.
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BUA maintained that EFCC agents had not raided its offices, despite Dangote Group officials confirming the raid and declaring that they were assisting the anti-graft agency by providing pertinent documents.
A top EFCC official revealed that the agency was probing the preferential foreign exchange allocations allegedly made by Emefiele in defiance of extant financial rules and regulations and the CBN Act.
The official asserted, “The EFCC is investigating over 85 entities, which include companies and individuals. The probe has extended beyond 52 entities, and I can confirm that the Dangote Group and BUA Plc are part of the 85 entities under probe over the preferential foreign exchange allocations made by the former CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele, in defiance of extant financial rules and regulations and in disregard of the CBN Act.
“Some officials of those companies and individuals connected with the allocations have been invited by the commission for questioning, and all the affected entities have been asked to provide their financial documents from 2014 to 2023. We discovered that those allocations were not approved by former President Muhammadu Buhari, so it was more of a means for the former CBN governor and his cronies to launder money through forex transactions and Bureau De Change operators.
“But it should be noted that our investigation is comprehensive; it is deeper and encompassing, and absolutely independent of the CBN investigator, Obazee’s report. The charges against the former CBN governor will most likely be amended as there have been more discoveries from the forex probe.”
The EFCC source added, “The discoveries in the recent probe into forex transactions involving many individuals and organisations show that the former governor of the CBN will face amended charges soon. Lawyers of the commission are working on that and as soon as that is done, Emefiele will answer to the charges.
“We have found out how he used his position to help friends and acquaintances, business associates, relations and others.
“The charges against him are plenty. It is a pity that such a highly placed man used his office the way he did it.
“He is also going to face other charges like money laundering, abuse of office, even abuse of office may involve the declaration of assets.”
The EFCC agents who had besieged Dangote and BUA’s offices on Thursday left with documents pertaining to the companies’ foreign exchange dealings, according to Sunday PUNCH.
