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An Abuja-based Bureau de Change operator, Jamilu Abdullahi, on Thursday, told the Federal High Court in Abuja how ex-Kogi State governor, Yahaya Bello, repeatedly paid the school fees of his three daughters in dollars through him and his companies.
Abdullahi is the third prosecution witness in the trial of Ali Bello, the ex-governor’s nephew alongside Abba Daudu, Yakubu Adabenege, and Iyada Sadat.
The defendants are standing trial on 18 charges of money laundering and misappropriation to the tune of over N3bn.
A statement on Thursday by the EFCC’s Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, said
the witness disclosed that on one of the occasions, Daudu, the second defendant, brought $300,000 in cash to him for the payment of Yahaya Bello’s daughters’ school fees.
The statement quoted the witness as saying, “Abba Daudu called me to say that they have a transaction though it was on the weekend, but I drove down to the office and waited for them to come. Upon their arrival, three of them came. One of them stayed in the car with the driver, two of them walked to my office, and a friend of Abba Daudu was holding a black leather bag containing $300,000.
“Upon entering, he greeted, and Abba Daudu introduced him as his friend and business partner, saying he had a transaction. He dropped $300,000 in cash. I wanted to count the dollars before they left, but I could not due to the power outage.
“I told him I could not use my hands and needed to confirm that it was $300,000, so I locked the dollars in my office safe, and two of them left. Then, Abba Daudu’s friend said when I confirmed the sum, details would be forwarded to me for payment. However, the sum of $300,000 attracts some service charges which he said I should calculate and let Abba Daudu know.
“After I completed the transfer, I forwarded four receipts, indicating $75,000 four times to Abba Daudu, and he confirmed to me that the payment was confirmed successfully.”
Oyewale said when asked by the prosecution counsel if he knew anything regarding the transactions on Exhibit D, Pages 50, 52 and 53, the witness said, “Yes, I know the transactions of $75,000, being paid to the school four times totalling, the sum of $300,000 as forwarded by Abba Daudu and further confirmed that the fees were paid for one of Yahaya Bello’s daughters.”
Oyewale said another payment of the fees, the witness recalled, was done by a company, Aleshua Solutions Services, which, he said, paid the sum of $42,170 for Naima Ohunene Bello on January 24, 20222.
On Page One of Exhibit D, he identified a transaction of $44,675 also for Naima Bello, saying, “I have seen it on the receipt of the payment. Forty-four thousand, seven hundred dollars, ($44,700) was paid to the school, but due to internal charges from the bank, $25 dollars was deducted, making the total balance of $44,675.00.”
The beneficiary school, he told the court, was American International School.
The trial judge, Justice Obiora Egwuatu adjourned the matter till October 25, 2024 and November 5 and 6, 2024 for continuation of trial.
The PUNCH reports that the EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, had in April claimed that investigation by the anti-graft agency revealed that the ex-Kogi governor withdrew $720,000 from the state’s coffers to pay his child’s school fees.
Olukoyede made the statement while speaking with editors, Bureau Chiefs, and media executives at the EFCC Headquarters, Jabi, Abuja.
Olukoyede said, “A sitting governor, because he knew he was going, removed money directly from the government’s account (and sent) to Bureau de Change, and used it to pay his child’s school fee in advance.
“Dollars – $720,000 in advance, in anticipation that he was going to leave the government house.”
On April 27, the EFCC spokesman, Oyewale, said the American International School, Abuja returned $760,000 paid as advanced school fees by Bello to the anti-graft agency.
“The school has refunded the entire $ 760, 000 to the EFCC’s recovery account,” he said.
Earlier, the American International School of Abuja had asked the EFCC to provide “authentic banking details” for the refund of fees paid for the children of the former governor.
