EFCC Witness Tells Court How ₦10bn Kogi Funds Were Allegedly Traced To Ali Bello
✍️ By Teju/ February 16, 2026/ 6:50pm
The alleged ₦10.27 billion fraud trial involving Ali Bello, Chief of Staff to Kogi State Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo, continued on Monday at the Federal High Court, with fresh testimony linking key fund transfers to the defendant.
Testifying before Justice James Omotosho, an investigator with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ahmed Audu Abubakar, told the court that investigations uncovered several financial movements allegedly connected to Ali Bello and his co-defendant, Dauda Sulaiman.
According to the witness, documents obtained during the investigation revealed inflows and outflows of funds allegedly moved through bureau de change operators, with some transactions recorded under aliases linked to the defendants. He further testified that parts of the funds were allegedly used for property-related transactions in Gwarimpa, Abuja.
The EFCC investigator also addressed the admissibility of extra-judicial statements made by the defendants, stating that the statements were voluntarily obtained in the presence of their legal counsel. This led the court to conduct a trial-within-trial, after which the statements were admitted into evidence.
Following cross-examination, the witness was discharged, and the court adjourned the case until February 17, 2026, for continuation of proceedings. The trial continues to draw public attention as Nigerians closely monitor developments surrounding the alleged misuse and laundering of Kogi State government funds.
