The trial of former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Adoza Bello, continued on Thursday, January 15, 2026, at the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Maitama, Abuja, with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) tendering additional bank documents as evidence in the alleged ₦110.4 billion fraud case.
The case is being heard before Justice Maryanne Anineh, with Bello standing trial alongside Umar Shuaibu Oricha and Abdulsalami Hudu on a 16-count charge bordering on criminal breach of trust and money laundering.
At the resumed proceedings, the prosecution team led by Kemi Pinheiro, SAN, presented further bank records through Prosecution Witness Six (PW6), Mashelia Arhyel Bata, a compliance officer with Zenith Bank.
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During cross-examination by defence counsel J.B. Daudu, SAN, the witness explained various transaction entries on the account statements, including cheque payments and fund transfers involving Abdulsalami Hudu, Halims Hotels and Tours, and Mohammed Jami’u Sallau.
Bata told the court that while transaction descriptions were listed on the statements, he could not determine the purpose of individual payments or how funds were utilised.
He further disclosed inflows from the Kogi State Internal Revenue Service and multiple transactions described as “security fund” and “special security vote,” noting that several withdrawals followed shortly after deposits.
Under further questioning by Z.B. Abbas, counsel to the third defendant, the witness confirmed that withdrawals were carried out through duly signed cheques and that multiple signatories operated the Government House account.
Following the conclusion of PW6’s testimony, the prosecution called Prosecution Witness Seven (PW7), Mohammed Bello Hassan, an executive trainee with Keystone Bank.
PW7 tendered bank statements of Dantata and Sawoe Construction, revealing multiple ₦10 million credit transactions in February 2021 involving transfers from Maigari Murtala and Yusuf Mubarak, amounting to ₦100 million.
Another witness, Prosecution Witness Eight (PW8), Gabriel Ocha of First City Monument Bank (FCMB), presented account records of Kunfayakun Global Limited, including transactions linked to school fee payments and multiple web transfers totaling millions of naira.
Similarly, Prosecution Witness Nine (PW9), A.D. Ojoma of Sterling Bank, tendered statements of Bespoke Business Solutions Limited, highlighting large credit inflows from the Kogi State Internal Revenue Service, including payments exceeding ₦138 million and ₦242 million for various transactions in 2019.
After hearing the testimonies and admitting the documents into evidence, Justice Anineh adjourned the matter to Friday, January 16, 2026, for continuation of trial.
