Court Hears Yahaya Bello Had No Hand In Managing Kogi Govt House Account – EFCC Witness

Court Hears Yahaya Bello Had No Hand In Managing Kogi Govt House Account – EFCC Witness

A Federal High Court in Abuja was informed on Thursday that former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, had no involvement in managing the Kogi Government House account at the United Bank for Africa (UBA)……..READ MORE

Testifying as the second prosecution witness in the N80.2 billion money laundering case against Bello, UBA Compliance Officer, Mrs. Abimbola Williams, stated that the ex-governor’s name did not appear in any transactions linked to the account (No: 1003889575) during his tenure.

During cross-examination by Bello’s lawyer, Joseph Daudu (SAN), Williams confirmed that neither the account opening documents nor its statement contained Bello’s name. She also clarified that she was not the account officer for the Kogi Government House account, which was domiciled in Lokoja, not Abuja, where she worked.

Williams identified three signatories to the account, including Alhaji Yakubu Ismail, a Permanent Secretary. She also noted that most withdrawals were conducted using cheques, with an individual named Abdulsalami Hudu handling fund withdrawals on behalf of the Kogi Government House.

She further revealed that on December 12, 2018, ten separate transactions of N10 million each were made from the account, all labeled as cheque withdrawals in favor of Hudu. Another beneficiary of the withdrawals was Aminu J.O.

Additionally, Nicholas Ohehomon, the third prosecution witness and an internal auditor at the American International School, testified that Bello had entered into an agreement with the school to prepay the tuition fees for his five children for their entire duration of study. There was also an arrangement for the payment of fees for “future children.”

Documents related to Bello’s children’s admission, tuition payments, and a contractual agreement with the school for upfront fee payments were submitted as evidence.

The trial is set to continue on Friday.