Nigeria’s former Central Bank Governor Godwin Emefiele pleaded not guilty to 26 fresh charges brought against him by the country’s finance watchdog.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) accused Mr Emefiele of committing exchange rate violations during his tenure as the central bank chief.

He is accused of allocating $2bn (£1.5bn) in foreign exchange without following due process.

The court in Lagos on Monday ordered that Mr Emefiele be remanded in the watchdog’s custody until the resumption of the case on Thursday.

Mr Emefiele is already on trial on 20 separate charges at a court in the capital Abuja, including unlawfully withdrawing $6.2m from the Central Bank.

He is the most high-profile former official to be charged with corruption since President Bola Tinubu took office last May.

He was suspended not long after Mr Tinubu used the address at his May inauguration as president to criticise a key policy spearheaded by Mr Emefiele – the redesign of the currency, the naira.

Source:bbc.com