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| Ex-Gov Yahaya Bello |
The Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja has scheduled March 10, 11 and 12, 2026, for the continuation of the alleged money laundering case instituted against former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello.
At Wednesday’s sitting, the 10th prosecution witness called by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Olomotane Egoro, testified that the cash withdrawals under scrutiny complied with existing Central Bank of Nigeria regulations.
Egoro, a compliance officer with Access Bank who has been with the institution since May 2023, confirmed that Aminu Jimoh Olanrewaju was among the authorised signatories to the Kogi State Government House Administration Account.
He added that documents attached to the account opening package described Olanrewaju as a civil servant and Director of Accounts in the state government.
While being cross-examined, the witness stated that as a bank official, he had no insight into the internal administration of the Government House account and could not ascertain the specific purposes of the withdrawals beyond the narration contained in the transaction details.
He also acknowledged that Bello’s name did not feature in the transactions presented before the court.
Responding to questions from defence counsel, Abdulwahab Daudu (SAN), Egoro identified a payment of N14,453,900.84 dated May 6, 2022, as funds released for the supply of reading materials to Okene Local Government.
He equally pointed out other disbursements made for agrochemicals, farm inputs, medical consumables, sporting equipment and relief items across different local councils.
The banker further revealed that there were several cash withdrawals of N10m each within January 2018, as well as another in March of the same year.
According to him, the bank filed the necessary Suspicious Transaction Reports with the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit in line with regulatory requirements.
During the proceedings, the court admitted a subpoena issued by the Managing Director of Access Bank, which contained statements of the Kogi Government House Administration Account covering January 2016 to January 2024, alongside records of several companies.
Although counsel to the second and third defendants objected to the documents, Justice Maryann Anenih admitted them provisionally, noting that their evidential weight would be decided at a later stage before adjourning the trial.
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