Witness Narrates How Shehu Bello Bought Abuja Property For ₦650m: Yahaya Bello

The trial of Yahaya Bello, former governor of Kogi State continued on Monday, March 9, 2026 with the 11th Prosecution Witness, PW11, James Bem Igbakymeh, narrating before Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court, Maitama, Abuja, how a man identified as Shehu Bello purchased a property, located in Wuse II, Abuja at the cost of ₦650 million.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, is prosecuting Yahaya Bello on a 19-count charge, bordering on alleged money laundering to the tune of ₦80,246,470,088.88.

Igbakymeh, a lawyer, told the court that sometime in October 2021, his client instructed him to sell a property, located on Plot 1058, Cadastral Zone A08, Wuse II, Abuja.

According to him, he placed a banner on the property to attract prospective buyers, after which a man identified as Shehu Bello contacted him.
“He inquired about my office and came to meet me to negotiate for the purchase of the property,” he said.
He disclosed that after negotiations, both parties agreed on a price of ₦650 million.
The witness explained that the payment was made into three designated accounts provided by his client.
“My lord, the monies were paid into three designated accounts — SFC Foods Limited in Polaris Bank, JIT Agric Limited in Polaris Bank, and SFC Foods Limited in Heritage Bank,” he said.

He further told the court that the payments were made through different bureau de change operators before the property documents were eventually handed over to the buyer.

The witness also informed the court that EFCC investigators later invited him during the course of their investigation.
“Sometime after the completion of the transaction, I received a call from one Mohammed from the EFCC office in Lagos informing me that they were investigating a matter in which I had featured prominently and asking me to meet them at their Wuse II office in Abuja,” he said.

According to him, he honoured the invitation, wrote a statement, and submitted transaction documents to the Commission.

When shown the Offer Letter and Deed of Assignment relating to the transaction, the witness confirmed that he could identify them.
“The letter was written by me and the Deed of Assignment was the one we signed. I can see the signature of my client and mine,” he told the court.

The prosecution subsequently tendered the documents in evidence. Although the defence reserved its objections until the final written address, Justice Nwite admitted the Deed of Assignment and the Offer Letter as Exhibits 44 and 45, respectively.

When asked to look at the last page of Exhibit 45, the witness told the court that the name indicated as the assignee was Ali Bello.

However, when asked whether Ali Bello and Shehu Bello were the same person, he replied, “No.”

Explaining the discrepancy, he said both men had appeared together during the negotiation process.
“My lord, during the course of the transaction, Shehu Bello came to my office with Ali Bello on two occasions during the negotiations,” he said.

Under cross-examination, the witness admitted that he was not the one who prepared the Deed of Assignment.
“It was brought to me by the people who wanted to buy the property,” he said.
He also confirmed that the name appearing as the assignee in the document was Ali Bello.
After his testimony, the witness was discharged.

The prosecution then called its 12th witness, PW12, Jamilu Abdullahi, a bureau de change operator.

Abdullahi told the court that he owned three companies: Kunfayakun Global Limited, E-Traders International Limited, and De-Remita International Limited.

He confirmed making a statement to the EFCC in 2021, which the court admitted in evidence as Exhibit 36.

The witness also confirmed that he was the signatory to the accounts of the companies and that he operated a personal account with Access Bank.

While identifying earlier admitted bank statements, he said Exhibit 33(1) was his personal Access Bank account, Exhibit 33(6) belonged to E-Traders International Limited, while Exhibit 37(1) belonged to Kunfayakun Global Limited.

Abdullahi further told the court that he met one Abba Adaudu in 2021 at Zenith Bank in Apo, Abuja, where they exchanged contacts after discovering that he is into foreign exchange transactions.

According to him, Adaudu later began sending funds to him for foreign exchange transactions. He testified that several deposits were made into his account in tranches of ₦10 million each.

When his attention was drawn to transactions dated December 29 and 30, 2021, showing deposits totaling ₦60 million made at Access Bank in Lokoja, the witness said he did not personally make the deposits.
“My name was used as the narration, but I was not the one who paid the money. It was Abba Adaudu,” he said.
He further told the court that he had never visited the Access Bank branch in Lokoja.
“Not in my life, my lord,” he said.

According to him, whenever funds were deposited, he converted them to foreign currency and handed the cash dollars to Adaudu.
“I converted them to dollars and gave them to Abba Adaudu,” he said, adding that the transactions lasted for more than a year.
He further explained that the inflows were sometimes cash deposits and, at other times, transfers from companies linked to Adaudu, including Keyless Nature Limited and Ejadams Essence Limited.

The witness also told the court that he sometimes instructed other companies to effect international transfers on his behalf, including payments of school fees to the American International School.

While being led through multiple transactions in the E-Traders International Limited account statement, he confirmed that several deposits running into hundreds of millions of naira were made on the instructions of Abba Adaudu on various dates between 2021 and 2022.

However, during the proceedings, the witness informed the court that he was exhausted due to fasting and could not continue with his testimony. He consequently stood down to continue his testimony on the next adjourned date.

Earlier in the proceedings, Justice Nwite delivered a ruling on the admissibility of two documents relating to the alleged sale of Plot 1160, Cadastral Zone, Gwarimpa II, Abuja, reportedly sold for ₦100 million.
The judge held that the documents were admissible in evidence.
“In view of the above, I am of the opinion that the authorities cited are in tandem with the scenario at hand, where the prosecution has clearly put it before the court that the intent and purpose of tendering the documents is only to indicate the existence of a transaction and nothing more.
“Therefore, this Honourable Court holds that the documents sought to be tendered are admissible,” Justice Nwite ruled.

Consequently, the court admitted the documents in evidence, marking the Irrevocable Power of Attorney as Exhibit 42 and the Deed of Assignment as Exhibit 43.
Following the ruling, prosecution counsel, Chukwudi Enebeli, SAN, continued the examination-in-chief of the 10th prosecution witness, PW10, Mahmoud Abdulaziz, an accountant with Dantata and Sawoe Construction Limited.

Yahaya Bello

While identifying the documents earlier tendered, Abdulaziz told the court that Exhibit 31 was a Keystone Bank account statement belonging to Dantata and Sawoe Construction Limited.

He further explained that Exhibit 42 was the Irrevocable Power of Attorney between Dantata and Sawoe Construction Limited and Azba Real Estate Limited, while Exhibit 43 was the Deed of Assignment executed between the two companies.

Explaining how the name of Azba Real Estate Limited appeared on the Deed of Assignment, the witness said the construction company authorised the arrangement.
“My lord, Dantata and Sawoe gave consent and assigned Azba to execute the deed. They, Azba, then gave us the two documents. Our director signed on behalf of Dantata, and Ali Bello signed on behalf of Azba,” he said.

During cross-examination by defence counsel J.B. Daudu, SAN, the witness admitted that he was not present when the documents were signed.
Asked whether he could identify the signatories, he said he could recognise the signatures of his company’s directors.
“My lord, I can identify the signatures of our two directors. The names are Mubarak Dantata and Nasiru A. Dantata,” he said.

However, he told the court that he could not identify who signed on behalf of Azba Real Estate Limited.

With no further questions from both parties, the witness was discharged.

Following the witness’s testimony, lead prosecution counsel, Kemi Pinheiro, SAN, moved a motion dated February 2, 2026, seeking to set aside an earlier order of the court, permitting the defendant to travel abroad.
Pinheiro told the court that the application was filed based on fresh developments and security concerns.
“My lord, we are just being careful and concerned that the defendant should remain in Nigeria to face his trial to prevent the possibility of extradition and incarceration in another country,” he said.

However, defence counsel Daudu opposed the application, arguing that the defendant had already been granted bail, which allowed him freedom of movement, and that he remained presumed to be innocent.

He also argued that the presence of an Interpol Red Notice on the system could complicate the travel arrangement.
“Allowing him to travel without removing the Red Notice is like giving him something with the left hand and collecting it back with the right hand,” he said.

After listening to both parties, Justice Nwite adjourned the matter until April 22, 23 and 24, 2026, and May 6 and 7, 2026, for continuation of trial.

Enugu EFCC Arrests Man For Alleged Land Fraud

Operatives of the Enugu Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC have arrested one Ifeanyi Mba for alleged N10,000,000. 00 (Ten million Naira) land fraud.

The suspect was arrested following claims of a petitioner alleging that he paid the suspect the said sum for a piece of land located at Plot 677 Owo/Premier Layout, Ogui Nike community in Enugu state, only to find out that the land was being developed by unknown persons.

According to the petitioner, when he contacted the suspect regarding the development, he said he was informed that the said property was government owned. Subsequently, all efforts made by the petitioner to recover his money proved abortive as the suspect remained incommunicado.

EFCC

Preliminary investigations by the EFCC showed that there is no layout bearing Plot 677 Owo/ Premier within the government acquired areas and that Owo/Premier layouts are two separate layouts.

The suspect will be charged to court as soon as investigations are concluded.

ICPC Links Multiple Million-Dollar Apartments, Villas In Egypt To El-Rufai: Sources

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has reportedly linked six real estate assets in Egypt to Nasir el-Rufai, the former governor of Kaduna state.

TheCable understands that the properties were discovered during the commission’s probe of el-Rufai’s tenure as governor.

El-Rufai is yet to react to the allegations but has continued to maintain his innocence since his arrest, alleging that he is being persecuted for his political choices.

All the assets — three villas and six apartments — are said to be located in highbrow estates and areas in Cairo, the capital of Egypt.

Based on checks by TheCable, villas in Arabilla Estate and Banafsik Estate, both in New Cairo, are sold for between $1,000,000 and $1,300,000.

Meanwhile, apartments in Cairo Festival City have a price tag of around $500,000 each.

Sources privy to the ICPC’s investigation informed TheCable that the real estate assets in the North African country were purchased between 2021 and 2023.

El-Rufai was the governor of Kaduna during the reported period of acquisition.

S/N PROPERTY LOCATION QUANTITY HOUSE NOs
1 VILLA ARABILLA ESTATE, 5TH SETTLEMENT AREA, NEW CAIRO, EGYPT 1 113
2 VILLA BANAFSIK ESTATE, FIRST SETTLEMENT AREA, NEW CAIRO. EGYPT 1 18
3 VILLA ORIANA II, NEW CAIRO, (NEAR AMERICAN UNIVERSITY) EGYPT 1 11
4 APARTMENT CAIRO FESTIVAL CITY, NEW CAIRO, EGYPT 4 514,515,516 & 517
5 APARTMENTS ORIANA ESTATE, NEW CAIRO, EGYPT 2 4000 & 4100
‘I DON’T NEED MANSIONS, BIG HOUSES’

In a 2023 interview in Hausa, el-Rufai had said that, unlike some people, he “didn’t syphon the money to Dubai and buy houses or go to Jabi Road and build a mansion”.

Then, serving out his second term as Kaduna governor, el-Rufai had boasted of having only one house, saying he did not need mansions or big houses.

“We aren’t like such people. I became the Governor of Kaduna State with only one house located at Danja Street in Unguwan Sarki, Kaduna,” Daily Trust quoted him as saying.

“I have completed my tenure, Alhamdulillah…that is my only house. I don’t have any other house. I didn’t build a mansion. I don’t even need it.”

ICPC/EFCC PROBE, DSS GRILLING

The ICPC is probing el-Rufai over alleged financial impropriety during his tenure as governor of Kaduna state between 2015 and 2023.

The former minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has been in the custody of the ICPC since February 18.

The commission conducted a raid on his Abuja residence on February 19, during which wire-tapping equipment was reportedly discovered.

Before being taken into ICPC custody, el-Rufai had been grilled by the Department of State Services (DSS) over his allegation that the phone of Nuhu Ribadu, the national security adviser, was tapped.

The DSS has since filed a three-count charge against him for allegedly intercepting the NSA’s telephone conversation

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El-Rufai had also spent two nights at the headquarters of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) following his arrival from Cairo on February 12.

In 2024, the Kaduna state house of assembly indicted him over the alleged diversion of N423 billion in public funds and money laundering, and demanded that anti-graft agencies investigate him.

EL-RUFAI FIGHTS BACK

The former director-general of the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) has sued the ICPC over the alleged unlawful invasion of his Abuja residence.

He is seeking, among other reliefs, a declaration that the search and seizure carried out by operatives of the ICPC and the Nigeria Police Force violated his fundamental rights to dignity, personal liberty, fair hearing and privacy.

He is also asking the court to hold that any evidence obtained from the search is inadmissible in any proceeding against him.

He is further seeking an order restraining the respondents from relying on or tendering any material seized during the search in the course of any investigation or prosecution.

El-Rufai

The former Kaduna governor has demanded N1 billion as general, exemplary and aggravated damages for what he described as trespass, unlawful seizure and the psychological trauma and reputational harm allegedly occasioned by the search.

FRESH LEGAL ACTION

El-Rufai has also accused the ICPC of defamation and forgery, threatening a separate legal action against the anti-graft agency.

In a pre-action notice, lawyers representing el-Rufai alleged that the commission issued a defamatory press statement and relied on forged documents in connection with his arrest and detention.

His family has also demanded his immediate and unconditional release from custody, saying his continued detention by the ICPC has no legal basis.

El-Rufai has maintained that the probe against him is politically motivated.

He said he is being investigated because of his membership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), “the only surviving opposition party in Nigeria”.