Kogi Fraud Case: Bank Compliance Officer Traces ₦46.5m Transfer to American International School

The trial of former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Adoza Bello, over an alleged ₦80.2 billion fraud continued on Thursday, February 5, 2026, before Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court, Maitama, Abuja, with fresh testimony detailing payments to educational institutions, including the American International School.
Bello is being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on a 19-count charge bordering on money laundering to the tune of ₦80,246,470,088.88.
At the resumed hearing, the prosecution presented its Eighth Witness (PW8), Gabriel Ochoche, a compliance officer with First City Monument Bank (FCMB), who testified pursuant to a subpoena.
Led in evidence by Olukayode Enitan, SAN, the subpoena was admitted in evidence without objection as Exhibit 36.
PW8 told the court that a review of transactions linked to Kunfayakun Global Limited revealed several payments to educational institutions, including a ₦30 million transfer on November 1, 2021, to American International School/Abdul Bashir, as well as another payment of ₦16,505,400 to the same school, bringing the total to ₦46,505,000.
The witness confirmed that he was in court with the statement of account, certificate of compliance and account opening documents of Kunfayakun Global Limited (Account No: 7819613011), which were admitted as Exhibit 37 without objection.
Although the account statement initially covered transactions from June 1, 2021, to August 31, 2022, PW8 clarified under questioning that the documents before the court reflected transactions from June 29, 2021, to December 31, 2024.
Explaining the structure of the bank statement, PW8 said it contained seven columns: date, reference, description, value date, deposit, withdrawal and balance.
Reading from the exhibit, the witness identified major inflows into the account, including a ₦700 million NIP transfer from Keyless Nature Limited on December 15, 2021, and an RTGS inflow of ₦400 million on December 17, 2021, ordered by the same company through Access Bank.
On November 2, 2021, PW8 further identified multiple inflows from Gadonkaya Global Concept — ₦10 million, ₦10 million and ₦8.96 million — alongside an outflow of ₦34,506,600 to American School and China Payment/Abdul Bashir.
He also testified that on February 18, 2022, there were six separate NIP transfers of ₦100 million each from Ejadams Essence Limited, totaling ₦600 million, an amount he confirmed under oath.
According to the witness, an additional RTGS inflow of ₦325 million was recorded on February 21, 2022, with a value date of February 18, 2022, by order of Ejadams Essence Limited.
Earlier in the proceedings, Prosecution Witness 7 (PW7), Olomotane Egoro, a compliance officer with Access Bank, continued his testimony under cross-examination.
Egoro confirmed that an entry dated June 22, 2022, reflected an outflow of ₦20 million for the supply of educational materials, noting that it was not a cash withdrawal, though he could not identify the beneficiary from the document.
He further acknowledged multiple cash withdrawals made by Yakubu Siyaka between January 2019 and December 2022, totaling over ₦552 million.
Explaining banking obligations, the witness stated that while customers may use their funds freely, banks are required to report transactions that fall outside a customer’s profile or align with money laundering typologies.
Egoro confirmed that Access Bank filed a Suspicious Transaction Report (STR) with the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), but noted that the contents were protected by law and could not be disclosed in court.
An attempt by defence counsel, J.B. Daudu, SAN, to question the witness on the contents of the STR was opposed by Kemi Pinheiro, SAN, with the court upholding the objection on the grounds that a document not before the court could not be interrogated.
Following the admission of several additional documents, Justice Nwite discharged PW7 from the witness box and adjourned the matter to March 3 and March 9, 2026, for continuation of trial.