A prosecution witness in the ongoing trial of former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, has told the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Maitama, Abuja, that transactions worth ₦1.425 billion were carried out for foreign exchange purchases between December 15, 2021, and February 21, 2022.
The witness, a bureau de change operator, Jamilu Abdullahi, testified on Thursday, October 15, 2026, before Justice Maryanne Anineh while being led in evidence by prosecution counsel, Kemi Pinheiro, SAN.
Abdullahi, who appeared as Prosecution Witness 19 (PW19), said the foreign currencies purchased through the transactions were delivered to Abba Adaudu.
While examining Exhibit AR, containing transactions spanning July 2021 to April 2022, the witness confirmed receiving cash lodgments of ₦10 million each made by Adaudu through the Lokoja branch.
“My lord, I confirm the cash lodgments of Ten, Ten million Naira by Abba Adaudu from the Lokoja branch. My lord, I confirm I received the cash lodgments. It wasn’t for gift but for a forex transaction,” he told the court.
He explained that the funds were intended for the purchase of United States dollars, adding that a transfer dated January 18, 2022, from Keyless Limited, which he said belonged to Adaudu, was also for foreign exchange.
The witness, however, denied personally making several cash deposits recorded in his name through the Lokoja branch.
Addressing lodgments of ₦9 million, ₦8 million and another ₦8 million dated February 22, 2022, Abdullahi said he had never visited the branch.
“In fact, I have never been to that branch in my life, but my name has been used as a beneficiary as any other person’s name can be used as the receiver, and it was a dollar transaction for Abba Adaudu,” he said.
He gave a similar explanation for multiple cash lodgments recorded against his name on March 10 and 11, 2022, insisting that the deposits were made on Adaudu’s behalf.
Explaining how he identified the source of the deposits, Abdullahi said the transaction descriptions often contained names provided by Adaudu.
“My lord, I get to know the cash was paid on Abba Adaudu’s behalf because whenever he makes a lodgment of cash in my account, the indicating narration is Abba Adaudu or Jamilu Abdullahi or any other name of their choice,” the witness said.
He maintained that the transactions were for foreign exchange purposes and that he consistently delivered the converted currencies to Adaudu.
“My lord, I always send the converted forex to Abba Adaudu. All the transactions at the Lokoja were from Abba Adaudu,” he told the court.
Abdullahi also identified Exhibit AK as his personal account with Access Bank at the Aminu Kano branch in Abuja.
He confirmed entries showing cash lodgments of ₦10 million each on December 29 and 30, 2021, and January 1 and 31, 2022, but maintained that the deposits were made by Adaudu for foreign exchange transactions.
The witness further told the court that the purchased dollars were delivered to Adaudu either at his own office or at Adaudu’s office in Area 8, Garki, Abuja.
On transactions involving Kunfayakun Global Limited, which he identified as his company, Abdullahi confirmed a credit entry of ₦100 million from Keyless Nature Limited through FCMB, Zone 4, in 2021.
He attributed the transfer to Adaudu, adding that another transfer of ₦400 million through Keyless Nature Limited was also linked to him.
The witness also identified multiple transfers of ₦100 million each, totalling ₦600 million, from Ejadams Essence Limited on February 18, 2022, which he said belonged to Adaudu.
The testimony forms part of the prosecution’s presentation of financial transactions in the ongoing trial involving the alleged ₦110.4 billion fraud linked to Bello.
The court is hearing evidence concerning the transactions and the witness’s explanation of their purpose as the trial continues.