Recent revelations from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) detail how former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Adoza Bello reportedly misappropriated state funds to acquire high-value properties in Dubai, UAE, and Abuja, Nigeria.

In a new 16-count charge filed against him, the EFCC claims that Bello funneled over five million Dirhams towards purchasing a property located in Dubai’s Khalifa Municipality. Furthermore, the former governor is accused, along with associates Umar Shuaibu Oricha and Abdulsalami Hudu, of misappropriating ₦950 million for a property acquisition at No. 35 Danube Street in the Maitama District of Abuja in 2023, all while overseeing the state’s treasury.

These serious allegations have led the EFCC to file fresh charges against Bello at the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory in Abuja. They assert that Bello, Oricha, and Hudu collectively misused more than ₦110 billion of public funds to secure numerous properties in both Abuja and Dubai.

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The charge, marked CR/7781/2024, was officially dated September 24 and submitted by EFCC attorney Mr. Kemi Pinheiro, SAN, on September 25. It includes accusations of criminal breach of trust under Section 312 of the Penal Code Laws of Northern Nigeria, 1963.

Key details from the charges include:

  • Count One: Bello, Oricha, and Hudu allegedly conspired in 2016 in Abuja to commit a criminal breach of trust involving ₦110,446,470,089 entrusted to them.
  • Count Two: In 2023, while controlling the state’s finances, they reportedly misappropriated ₦950 million for the property in Maitama.
  • Count Eleven: The defendants allegedly used over five million Dirhams to purchase property in Dubai.
  • Count Fourteen: They are accused of unlawfully transferring $570,330 to an account at TD Bank, USA, in 2021 while managing the state’s treasury.
  • Count Fifteen: Additionally, they allegedly transferred $556,265 to the same account during the same timeframe.
  • Count Sixteen: It is claimed that Bello unlawfully managed ₦677,848,000 from Bespoque Business Solution Limited between 2017 and 2018.

As of now, no arraignment date has been set for the former governor regarding these allegations. Notably, the EFCC has previously attempted four times in the last five months to bring Bello before the Federal High Court in Abuja to answer charges related to ₦80.2 billion in fraud, but he has consistently failed to appear.