The trial of former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello and his co-defendants continued on Thursday at the Federal High Court in Abuja, with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) presenting additional bank transaction records as evidence in the alleged N110.4 billion fraud case.
Bello is standing trial alongside Umar Shuaibu Oricha and Abdulsalami Hudu on 16 counts of criminal breach of trust and money laundering.
During the hearing, a Zenith Bank compliance officer, Mashelia Arhyel Bata, testified as the sixth prosecution witness (PW6) and was cross-examined by defence counsels. The EFCC, led by Senior Advocate of Nigeria Kemi Pinheiro, tendered account statements highlighting specific transactions under scrutiny.
Key Transaction Details Revealed
Under questioning by Joseph Daudu, counsel for Bello and Oricha, the witness pointed to entries in the government house account statement (exhibit S1).
These included:
* A cheque payment of N10 million to the third defendant, Abdulsalami Hudu, on January 20, 2016.
* A payment of N2,454,400 to "Halims Hotels and Tours, Lokoja."
* A transfer of N74,378,483.20 from the Kogi State Internal Revenue Service on December 6, 2016.
* Two separate cheque payments of N10 million each to one "Mohammed Jami’u Sallau" on the same date.
The witness confirmed that the transaction descriptions did not indicate the purpose of these payments. He also clarified that Hudu, introduced to the bank as a civil servant and accountant, made all his withdrawals via duly signed cheques.
Defence Questioning and Case Adjournment
The defence sought to probe the nature and volume of transactions, with Daudu suggesting there were 21 transactions within a specific period in March 2016—though the witness noted his records began from November of that year.
Counsel for the third defendant, Z.B. Abbas, confirmed from the witness that the account in question was the official Kogi State Government House account and that Hudu was an authorised signatory.
Presiding Judge Maryanne Anineh adjourned the case to January 16, 2026, for the continuation of the trial. The proceedings are part of one of Nigeria’s most high-profile corruption cases, with the EFCC methodically presenting financial records to substantiate its allegations against the former governor and his associates.
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