₦1.09 billion withdrawn in 3 days from Kogi government account – Witness testifies in Yahaya Bello’s trial

A prosecution witness in the ongoing trial of Yahaya Bello, former Governor of Kogi State, on Thursday revealed how over ₦1.09 billion was withdrawn in just three days from the Kogi State Government House’s Administration Account.

This was before  Emeka Nwite, Justice of the Federal High Court in Maitama, Abuja, by Mashelia Arhyel Dada, a compliance officer with Zenith Bank, Maitama branch, who appeared under subpoena as Prosecution Witness Four (PW4).

According to a statement by Dele Oyewale, Head of Media and Publicity at the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Dada gave detailed evidence of large-scale withdrawals allegedly carried out between 2016 and 2023, using multiple banking channels and instruments.

Led in evidence by prosecuting counsel, Kemi Pinheiro, Dada said the bank had submitted seven sets of documents in response to a subpoena directed to its Managing Director.

According to EFCC, the documents were admitted by the court as Exhibits 20 to 24C.

Among the accounts reviewed were those belonging to Adamu Jagafa Ishaya, Whales Oil and Gas, Jimeda Properties Nigeria Limited, Alyeshua Solutions, and most notably, the Kogi State Government House Administration Account.

Dada’s testimony focused primarily on that government account, where he detailed multiple violations of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) cashless policy.

According to him, while CBN policy capped cash withdrawals at ₦500,000 for individuals and ₦5 million for corporate or government entities during the relevant period, the account in question saw withdrawals far exceeding these limits.

He testified that between January 30 and February 1, 2018, a staggering ₦697,267,000 was withdrawn in ₦10 million tranches through cheques issued in the name of one Abdulsalami Hudu.

“On February 2, 2018, an additional ₦99,573,000 was similarly withdrawn, bringing the total withdrawn within those three days to ₦1,096,830,000”, he said.

The prosecution also disclosed that on February 1, 2018, a transfer of ₦3,325,000 was made from the same government account to one Ali Bello.

The trend reportedly continued in later years as Dada told the court that on May 6, 11, and 19, 2022, the account received ₦100 million on each occasion from the Kogi State Statutory Revenue Account.

Each inflow was immediately followed by cash withdrawals in ₦10 million tranches by Hudu and another individual, Alhassan Omakoji.

He added that from pages 395 to 401 of the account statement, almost every credit transaction was promptly followed by corresponding debit entries, largely through cheque withdrawals made out to the same individuals, often on the same day.

One of the more striking incidents cited by Dada occurred on September 7, 2023, when the account recorded 11 separate withdrawals of ₦10 million each, far above the ₦5 million cash limit, resulting in a surcharge of ₦500,000 per transaction and totalling ₦4.75 million in surcharges for that day alone.

Another significant transaction, according to the witness, occurred on January 20, 2018, when the account received 10 separate credits from the Kogi State Statutory Account amounting to over ₦697 million.

“These inflows were again followed by ₦10 million cheque withdrawals issued to Hudu and others. “On January 31, 2018, Hudu alone reportedly withdrew ₦347,267,000 in 36 separate transactions”, he added.

To back up his testimony, Dada explained the bank statement entries, outlining the six columns typically present in bank statements: date posted, value date, transaction description, debit, credit, and balance.

He also explained various transaction types, including NEFT and NIP transfers. The bank account’s opening documents, along with statements covering activity from as early as February 12, 2016, were submitted as part of Exhibit 22A.

Although the defence team, led by J.B. Daudu, objected to the admissibility of some documents, they reserved their arguments for a later time. Nwite, however, admitted all the documents and marked them accordingly.

The matter was adjourned to Friday, June 27, 2025, for cross-examination and continuation of the trial.