Alleged ₦110.4bn fraud: EFCC tenders fresh bank records against Yahaya Bello, others

By : Ameh Ochojila

Date: 15 January 2026 7:55pm WAT

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Yahaya Bello (in white) and APC members during the electronic registration exercise in Kogi State

Yahaya Bello (in white) and APC members during the electronic registration exercise in Kogi State

The trial of former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Adoza Bello, over alleged ₦110.4 billion fraud on Thursday witnessed the presentation of additional bank records by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) before the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Maitama, Abuja.

Bello is standing trial alongside Umar Shuaibu Oricha and Abdulsalami Hudu on a 16-count charge bordering on criminal breach of trust and money laundering. The case is being heard by Justice Maryanne Anineh.

At the resumed proceedings, the prosecution, led by Kemi Pinheiro, SAN, continued the cross-examination of Prosecution Witness Six (PW6), Mashelia Arhyel Bata, a compliance officer with Zenith Bank.

Defence counsel to the first and second defendants, J.B. Daudu, SAN, questioned the witness on entries contained in Exhibit S1, a statement of account earlier tendered in evidence.

PW6 explained that the “description” column in the statement reflected details of transactions, citing entries including a ₦10 million cheque issued to Abdulsalami Hudu on January 20, 2016, and another cheque payment of ₦2,454,400 to Halims Hotels and Tours, Lokoja.

He maintained, however, that he did not know the purposes for which the funds were used. Daudu also drew the witness’s attention to Exhibit X1, identified as the account opening documents of a company account domiciled at Zenith Bank’s Lokoja branch.

PW6 testified on several inflows and outflows in December 2016, including a ₦74.37 million credit from the Kogi State Internal Revenue Service and cheque payments of ₦10 million to Mohammed Jami’u Sallau.

He stated that the narration did not disclose the specific purposes of the payments. Further cross-examination by Z.B. Abbas, counsel to the third defendant, established that withdrawals from the Government House account were made by cheque and duly signed by authorised signatories, including the Permanent Secretary, Chief Accountant, and an Accountant.

An attempt by the defence to suggest that the third defendant acted merely in his official capacity was opposed by the prosecution and upheld by the court. PW6 also testified on multiple inflows described as security funds and special security votes between February and September 2016, followed by withdrawals.

He confirmed that the account statements originated from Zenith Bank but noted that the abbreviation “sec” was not a standard term used by the bank.

Following PW6’s discharge, the EFCC called Prosecution Witness Seven (PW7), Mohammed Bello Hassan, an executive trainee with Keystone Bank, who tendered the statement of account of Dantata and Sawoe Construction for 2021.

PW7 told the court that the account reflected several ₦10 million credit entries in February 2021, totalling ₦100 million, transferred by Maigari Murtala and Yusuf Mubarak in multiple tranches. Under cross-examination, he admitted he was not the account officer and had no personal knowledge of the account holders or signatories.

The prosecution also called Prosecution Witness Eight (PW8), Gabriel Ocha, a compliance officer with FCMB, who tendered documents relating to Kunfayakun Global Limited covering 2018 to 2024. He testified on transactions including a ₦30 million debit to the American International School and several ₦10 million web transfers and NIBSS inflows on November 1, 2021.

Thereafter, Prosecution Witness Nine (PW9), A.D. Ojoma, a compliance officer with Sterling Bank, tendered the statement of account of Bespoke Business Solutions Limited.

He identified several large credit entries, including payments from the Kogi State Internal Revenue Service running into hundreds of millions of naira in 2019.

Justice Anineh adjourned the matter to Friday, January 16, 2026, for continuation of the trial.

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