The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has arraigned two men, Ali Bala, also known as Barrister Ahmed, and Yusuf Umar Anka, over alleged financial crimes involving £110,000 and N500 million in Lagos.
The defendants were arraigned on Friday before Justice Olukayode Ogunjobi of the Lagos State High Court sitting in Ikeja.
They are facing a 10-count charge filed by the Lagos Zonal Directorate 1 of the EFCC, bordering on money laundering, stealing and retention of stolen property.
One of the counts alleged that Bala and Anka, sometime in 2025 in Lagos, conducted financial transactions involving proceeds of unlawful activities with the intention of disguising the source of £110,000 allegedly stolen.
The commission said the alleged offence contravened Section 7(1)(b)(i) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006.
The defendants, however, pleaded not guilty to all the charges when they were read to them.
Following their pleas, EFCC counsel, H.U. Kofarnaisa, urged the court to adjourn the matter for trial and remand the defendants in a correctional facility.
However, counsel to the defendants informed the court that a bail application had already been filed and was pending before the court.
Justice Ogunjobi subsequently adjourned the case until September 8, 2026, for hearing of the bail application.
The judge also ordered that Bala and Anka be remanded in EFCC custody pending the hearing of their bail application.
The arraignment followed an investigation by the anti-graft agency into the alleged financial transactions involving the defendants.
The allegations remain subject to determination by the court, as the defendants have pleaded not guilty to the charges.
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