The Federal Government has distanced itself from the reported N50 billion non-prosecution plea bargain with former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele.

It was alleged that Emefiele had entered into a plea bargain agreement, offering to surrender N50 billion for his early release from the Department of State Services (DSS) custody.

The plea bargain was supposedly intended to halt the trial of Emefiele on charges including money laundering, breach of the Public Procurement Act, and abuse of office.

However, the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Olasunkanmi Fagbemi, stated on Sunday that there was no truth to the alleged plea bargain deal. Fagbemi, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, clarified that neither his office nor the Presidency had engaged in any such arrangement with Emefiele.

The Federal Government’s position was communicated through a statement issued by Mrs. Modupe Ogundoro, the Director of Information in the Federal Ministry of Justice. The statement categorically denied the existence of a non-prosecution plea bargain agreement between Emefiele and the government, dismissing the reports as entirely false.

The statement further highlighted that although Emefiele’s legal team had expressed their intention to initiate a plea bargain arrangement during the last court hearing, no such agreement had been reached with Emefiele or his representatives.

The Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice urged the media and the public to disregard the false reports, emphasizing that the government would continue to act in the best interests of the Nigerian public.