The Federal High Court in Abuja has adjourned the alleged money laundering trial involving former Kogi State governor, Yahaya Bello, to May 6 for continuation of proceedings.
Justice Emeka Nwite fixed the new date to allow defence counsel, Joseph Daudu (SAN), to continue cross-examining the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s (EFCC) 12th prosecution witness, Abdullahi Jamilu.
During cross-examination, Jamilu told the court he made only one statement to the EFCC on May 10, 2022. He admitted that certain companies—Wales Oil and Gas, Forza Oil and Gas, and Aleshua Services—were not mentioned in Exhibit 46, which contained his initial statement. He also confirmed that names listed in another document, Exhibit 13, were not included in Exhibit 46 and that he was not the author of Exhibit 13
Earlier, Justice Nwite dismissed objections by the defence against the EFCC’s attempt to re-present Exhibit 46, describing the objection as speculative and misconstrued.
The witness further disclosed that he had previously testified before another Federal High Court judge, Obiora Egwuatu, in a related case. Though unsure of his witness number in that trial, he confirmed that the defendants included Ali Bello, Abah Adaudu, Yakuba Siyaka Adabenege, and Iyadi Sadat.
Additional documents were later admitted as Exhibit 47 without objection. Jamilu acknowledged that the transactions discussed in the earlier case were similar to those in the current trial.
Explaining his role, the witness—identified as a Bureau De Change operator—said he relied on colleagues to process dollar transfers when his accounts could not handle such transactions directly. He noted that the companies mentioned were owned by his associates in the market.
Jamilu also testified that he handled payments to the American International School Abuja on the instruction of Abba Adaudu, though he could not recall the name of the individual who accompanied him for the transaction. He confirmed that all payments were successfully processed and that transfer receipts were forwarded accordingly.
However, he later observed discrepancies in the documents, stating that some pages in Exhibit 13 were not part of the payment records he submitted.
Following the proceedings, Justice Nwite adjourned the case to May 6 and May 7 for the continuation of cross-examination
