- Court summoned Yahaya Bello over new fraud charges worth N110.4bn, with arraignment set for October 24
- Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) unable to serve notice to Yahaya Bello, delayed arraignment scheduled for October 3
- Public summons authorised by Justice Maryanne Anenih to be published in widely-read newspapers, others
The High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in Maitama has issued a public summons for former Kogi State governor, Yahaya Bello, in connection to an alleged misappropriation of N110.4 billion.
Bello, alongside two co-defendants, Umar Oricha and Abdulsalami Hudu, is required to appear in court for arraignment on October 24.
EFCC files charges against Bello, struggles to serve notice
The charges, filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on September 24, accused the defendants of criminal breach of trust.
The EFCC reported difficulties in serving the notice to Bello, which stalled the arraignment set for Thursday, October 3.
The inability to serve Bello with the court papers stalled the proceedings of the case which involved the serious allegations of public fund mismanagement.
Judge directs publication of summons in prominent locations
Justice Maryanne Anenih, in response to an application by the EFCC, authorised the public summons during a ruling on Thursday. She directed the EFCC to publish the summons in a widely read newspaper and display it at Bello’s last known address and visible spots within the court premises.
Recall that Bello was scheduled to appear before the court on Wednesday, September 25. However, his defence team, headed by Mr. A. M. Adoyi, informed Justice Emeka Nwite of a pending appeal at the Supreme Court. The defence argued that the trial should be paused until the Supreme Court’s decision is issued.
Bello sues EFCC after being declared wanted
“My lord, the appeal number is SC/CR/847/2024 and SC/CR/848/2024. We believe that the most appropriate thing to do is to await the decision of the Supreme Court in the aforesaid appeals, before taking any step for arraignment so as not to render the appellant’s appeal null or to pull the rug out of the feet of the Supreme Court,” Bello’s lawyer pleaded.
Yahaya Bello had filed a lawsuit against the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in the Supreme Court after being declared wanted by the agency.
This action followed the EFCC's ongoing efforts to prosecute the former governor over an earlier alleged N80.2 billion money laundering case.
EFCC brings up 16 fresh charges against Yahaya Bello totalling N110.4b
Meanwhile, TheRadar earlier reported that the ex-governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, who had earlier faced a 19-count charge was charged with another 16-count charge with two officials of the Kogi State government.
TheRadar listed the charges which included multiple accusations of misappropriating public funds for property acquisitions in Abuja and Dubai.