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| Former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello |
A prosecution witness has testified that over ₦1.09 billion was withdrawn from the Kogi State Government House’s Administration Account within just three days — a key revelation in the ongoing trial of former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, over an alleged ₦80.2 billion fraud.
Testifying before Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court, Maitama, Abuja, on Thursday, June 26, 2025, Mashelia Arhyel Dada, a compliance officer with Zenith Bank, detailed a series of questionable withdrawals and financial irregularities linked to the Kogi State Government’s accounts.
Dada, appearing as the fourth prosecution witness (PW4) under subpoena, presented seven sets of documents submitted in response to a subpoena served on the bank's managing director. The documents were admitted into evidence as Exhibits 20 to 24C.
Flagrant Breach of CBN Policy
According to Dada, multiple transactions violated the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) cashless policy, which caps withdrawals at ₦500,000 for individuals and ₦5 million for government or corporate entities. Despite these limits, massive cash withdrawals in ₦10 million tranches were made — triggering repeated penalty surcharges.
“Between January 30 and February 1, 2018, ₦697,267,000 was withdrawn through cheques issued in the name of one Abdulsalami Hudu,” Dada testified.“On February 2 alone, ₦99.57 million more was withdrawn, totaling ₦1.09 billion in three days.”
He also disclosed that on February 1, 2018, a transfer of ₦3.325 million was made from the same Kogi account to one Ali Bello.
Patterns of Suspicious Transactions
Dada told the court that the suspicious transactions continued into 2022 and 2023. On May 6, 11, and 19, 2022, the account received ₦100 million on each date from the Kogi State Statutory Revenue Account, immediately followed by cash withdrawals — primarily by Hudu and Alhassan Omakoji.
Referring to pages 395 to 401 of the bank statement, Dada noted that “almost every credit was followed by withdrawals on the same day,” suggesting a systematic pattern of fund diversion.
On September 7, 2023, the account recorded 11 separate ₦10 million withdrawals, incurring a ₦4.75 million surcharge in one day — a violation of withdrawal limits.
Another instance from January 20, 2018, involved 10 credit inflows totaling ₦697 million, which were again followed by cash withdrawals. On January 31, Hudu reportedly withdrew ₦347.27 million in 36 separate transactions.
Documents and Trial Progression
Lead prosecution counsel, Prof. Kemi Pinheiro (SAN), presented extensive records, including the account’s opening forms and full statement from February 2016 to present, contained in Exhibit 22A (pages 2 to 413). Dada also explained banking transaction terms such as NEFT and NIP transfers for the court.
Although the defence, led by J.B. Daudu (SAN), initially objected to some documents, they deferred arguments. Justice Nwite admitted the materials and adjourned the matter to Friday, June 27, 2025, for cross-examination.
Background
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is prosecuting Yahaya Bello for allegedly misappropriating ₦80.2 billion during his tenure as Kogi State Governor between 2016 and 2023.
The case remains one of the most high-profile corruption trials involving a former Nigerian governor in recent years.
