A Federal Capital Territory High Court, presided over by Justice Maryann Anenih, has adjourned further hearing in the ongoing money laundering trial of former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, to November 12 and 13, 2025.
The case resumed on Thursday with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) presenting its fifth and sixth witnesses.
The fifth witness, Victoria Oluwafemi, a Compliance Officer with Polaris Bank, testified about financial transactions linked to the case.
She disclosed that the account under scrutiny received multiple credit inflows, mainly in tranches of ₦10 million, with total deposits for November 2021 amounting to ₦450 million.
However, under cross-examination by defence counsel Joseph Daudu (SAN), Oluwafemi admitted she was not the account officer or relationship manager for the accounts in question and lacked details on how the transactions were executed.
Another defence lawyer, A.M. Aliyu, pointed out that the name Abdulsalam Hudu linked to the allegations, did not appear in the submitted exhibit. The witness confirmed this.
The EFCC then called its sixth witness, Mshelia Arhyel B, for cross-examination.
Defence counsel Daudu (SAN) noted that he was already cross-examining the same witness in a similar case before another judge and had not concluded that session.
But the court held that the matter before it was independent, and it was up to the defence to proceed or not.
The prosecution attempted to tender a set of documents through Mshelia.
Defence lawyers Daudu and Aliyu objected, citing Sections 83 and 84 of the Evidence Act, which deal with the admissibility of documents.
They reserved the right to elaborate on their objections later.
Despite their protest, the court admitted the document, a 218-page bank statement of Alusha Services, signed by the witness, as Exhibit P1.
Prosecuting counsel Kemi Pinheiro (SAN) also asked Mshelia to verify multiple transactions on various dates between 2016 and 2022, including large cash withdrawals made in ₦10 million batches, which the witness confirmed were within permitted limits.
By January 31, 2018, the total withdrawals were recorded at over ₦707 million.
Additionally, Mshelia confirmed foreign currency transactions in May 2022, including $2,500 and $5,000 transfers, as well as N202 million in payments from the Kogi State Internal Revenue Service in December 2016.
Due to time constraints, Justice Anenih adjourned the proceedings at 3pm setting November 12 and 13 for the continuation of the cross-examination of the sixth witness.
At a previous session, the third prosecution witness, Williams Abimbola, a Compliance Officer with UBA, stated that none of the transactions in question violated any banking regulations and confirmed he was not the account manager for the Kogi Government House account.
