The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has announced its intention to prosecute senior lawyers representing the immediate past governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, over their failure to produce him in court.
EFCC spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, confirmed the agency’s stance, stating, “The matter is in court and there are various orders of the court. Senior lawyers who failed to bring him (Bello) to court are already slated for discipline.”
Yahaya Bello remains at large 107 days after being declared wanted by the EFCC.
On April 18, 2024, the EFCC declared Bello wanted in connection with an alleged money laundering case involving N80,246,470,089.88.
The former governor evaded arrest on April 17, when armed men identified as ‘Special Forces’ and some policemen prevented EFCC operatives from apprehending him at his Wuse Zone 4 residence in Abuja.
The current governor of Kogi State, Usman Ododo, was reported to have rushed to Bello’s house and escorted him out of the location.
The Federal High Court in Abuja had previously granted the EFCC a warrant of arrest for Bello, who, along with three other suspects—Ali Bello, Dauda Suliman, and Abdulsalam Hudu—was slated to be arraigned before Justice Emeka Nwite on 19 counts of money laundering.
However, the inability to arrest Bello has stalled the arraignment process.
Speculations about Bello’s whereabouts have varied.
Austin Okai, the House of Representatives candidate for Dekina/Bassa Federal Constituency in the 2023 elections under the Peoples Democratic Party, claimed on June 21 that Bello was hiding in the state Government House in Lokoja.
This contradicted earlier reports suggesting Bello had been smuggled out of the country.
Despite these setbacks, the EFCC has continued its manhunt for Bello. Okechukwu Nwanguma, Executive Director of the Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre, criticised the EFCC, alleging that the agency was not genuinely committed to arresting Bello.
He argued that the EFCC had the necessary resources to track and apprehend the former governor. “If they truly wanted to arrest Yahaya Bello, they would have arrested him. If this was a case of a poor man, they would have easily arrested him,” Nwanguma stated.
In response, EFCC spokesperson Dele Oyewale refuted claims that the agency was compromised or unwilling to arrest Bello, insisting that the former governor remained a wanted man.
“The matter is in court and there are various orders of the court. Senior lawyers who failed to bring him (Bello) to court are already slated for discipline.
If an anti-corruption agency declares a suspect wanted, all over the world, he remains wanted until he is arrested.
Yahaya Bello has been declared wanted and he remains wanted.
Judicial processes have been instituted in court and they are ongoing,” Oyewale said.
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