The Department of State Services (DSS) has released Kingsley Obiora, Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in charge of Economic Policy, after detaining him for four days in its custody.

BusinessDay confirmed his release on Saturday afternoon.

The DSS arrested Obiora on Tuesday as part of a clampdown on senior officials of the apex bank, which began with the suspended Governor, Godwin Emefiele.

While in the DSS detention, Obiora was reportedly pressured to stand as a witness against the suspended bank chief.

President Tinubu appointed a Jim Obazee-led special panel to investigate the CBN following the arrest and prosecution of Emefiele over alleged financial infractions in late July. BusinessDay understands that they have been questioning the deputy governors of the CBN and other senior officials of the bank as part of the ongoing audit.

Kingsley Obiora, the Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in charge of Economic Policy, has been under pressure from a team of investigators from the Department of State Services (DSS) since Tuesday afternoon when he was taken to their headquarters in Abuja.

The investigators are reportedly asking him to provide information about the activities of his former boss, CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele.

Emefiele has been in the DSS custody since June 10, 2023, a day after President Tinubu removed him from office.

“Let us be clear. No one is accusing Dr. Obiora of fraud or theft. Dr. Obiora,, like other Deputy Governors, have been severely questioned by the panel before his detention. They, however, do not believe that he has told them everything he knows. They are forcing him to admit to things he has no direct knowledge of nor is part of the decision-making process. This is where there is an issue, and it has been quite frustrating for the respected economist, who joined the apex bank from the respected IMF”, a source had said. (BusinessDay)

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