Ex Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello has reacted to the arrest of his nephew, Alli Bello, by Economic and Financial Crimes Commission ( EFCC ).
Governor Yahaya Bello in a close source at Government House Lokoja on Thursday morning said, “it was a great mistake by EFCC to have arrested the young man who is diligently serving our dear state as Chief of Staff to Executive Governor of the State at the moment”.
He said, ” if the arrest is not reversed immediately with apology, definitely, names of highly profile officers who also collected bribe would be mentioned”.
” It will serve them good if they quickly think twice else, there would be massive indictment here and there” – Bello threatens.
He concluded, “enough is enough for the wise ! ”
Recall that, the Chief of Staff to Kogi State Governor, Alli Bello, and one Daudu Suleiman were on last week Thursday re-arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission at the Federal High Court in Abuja for allegedly misappropriating N84bnn.
The anti-graft agency had on December 15, 2022, arraigned Alli Bello who is also a nephew of former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, and Suleiman, on 10 counts of alleged misappropriation and money laundering.
The EFCC accused Bello, alongside Hudu, a cashier at the Kogi State Government House who is at large, of withdrawing N10 billion from the state’s treasury for personal use.
In the amended charges, the EFCC increased the counts to 17 and bordered on Money laundering, breach of trust, and misappropriation of fund
to the tune of N84bn.
The name of the immediate past governor of the state, Bello was mentioned in one of the counts and was said to be at large.
Count one of the charges read, “That you, Alli Bello, Dauda Suleiman, Yahaya Adoza Bello (still at large) and Abdulsalam Hudu (still at large), sometime in September 2015 in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, conspired amongst yourselves to convert the total sum of N80bn which sum you reasonably ought to have known forms part of the proceeds of your unlawful activity to wit: criminal breach of trust and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 18(b) and punishable under Section 15(3) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 as amended.”
The EFCC also accused Alli Bello and Dauda Suleman of concealing several millions of naira with one Rabiu Musa Tafada, a Bureau De Change operator trading under Global Venture in Abuja.
