Justice Hamza Muazu of the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja has denied a request by the Department of State Services (DSS) for a 14-day extension of custody for suspended Central Bank Governor Godwin Emefiele.
The DSS based its application on allegedly fresh evidence obtained.
The DSS’s legal team filed the application quietly on Wednesday, and it was heard today by the vacation judge.
Justice Muazu dismissed the application, citing it as an abuse of court process and identifying the lack of jurisdiction.
Upon questioning by the judge about the court’s jurisdiction, given the exclusive rights of the Magistrate Court to grant detention orders under Sections 293 and 296 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, the DSS’s counsel, Mr. Victor Ejelonu, opted to withdraw the matter.
The application came in the wake of Mr. Emefiele’s re-arrest by the DSS from the Federal High Court premises in Lagos, following his remand in a Correctional Centre while awaiting the fulfilment of his bail conditions granted by Justice Nicholas Oweibo.