Bello goes into hiding to evade EFCC arrest – Sources

Highly placed indicated that the immediate past governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Adoza Bello has gone into hiding to evade arrest by the operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.

CAPITAL POST learnt that the anti-graft agency laid in wait to nab him from his Abuja residence, but later gathered that he has went to Okene after handing over to his successor, Ododo Ahmed Usman.

He was actually in Okene after the ceremony and was well received by mammoth crowd of supporters, and after that his whereabout remains a mystery as at Tuesday morning.

In a similar report, Saharareporters reported that Bello cancelled the Okene trip and went into hiding so as not to be arrested by operatives of Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.

The Online platform quoted a source, saying that Bello was still at the Government House, Lokoja, where he could enjoy the “protection” of his predecessor and godson, Usman Ododo, while other sources claimed his whereabouts are unknown.

The search for Bello was at the backdrop of his many fraud allegations while in office. CAPITAL POST gathered that the former governor has been investigated, but can’t be prosecuted due to immunity he enjoyed in office as governor of Kogi State.

However, sources gave a conflicting report about his whereabout, when another person said, he may have left the Government House.
“EFCC is currently after Bello. He was meant to go to Okene but when he heard of their presence, he cancelled it and is hiding in Government House, Lokoja currently.”

“He’s clearly attempting to evade arrest and he may have also left the Government House,” another source said.

It had been reported that Justice Nicholas Oweibo of the Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos struck out the commission’s suit seeking the forfeiture of 14 properties belonging to Yahaya Bello as well as the sum of N400million linked to him, citing his immunity from prosecution under the 1999 constitution.

The Commission’s notice of appeal had stated that Justice Oweibo erred in law when he dismissed the suit because the Respondent’s immunity from civil or criminal proceedings during his tenure as governor of Kogi State does not extend to properties reasonably suspected to be proceeds of crime traced to him.

It also stated that the court erred and caused a miscarriage of justice by refusing to bind itself to the Court of Appeal’s decision in EFCC V Fayose (2018) LPELR 44131 CA and the Supreme Court’s decision in Fawehinmi V IGP (2002)7 NWLR (PT767)606, on the proper interpretation of Section 308 of the 1999 Constitution.

The EFCC also claimed that the learned trial court erred in law when it overturned a preservation order for properties reasonably suspected to have been derived from the proceeds of illegal activities, despite its findings that the Respondent failed to demonstrate the genuine origin of funds used to acquire the properties under the preservation order.

On Wednesday, February 22, 2023, Justice Oweibo granted an interim forfeiture of the properties in Lagos, Abuja, and the United Arab Emirates, and also ordered the preservation of the sum of N400,000,000.00 (Four Hundred Million Naira) recovered from one Aminu Falala, which “is reasonably suspected to have been derived from unlawful activity and intended to be used for the acquisition of Plot No. 1224 Bishop Oluwole Street, Victoria.”

Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, counsel to the EFCC, moved the application, stating that the properties, including “Hotel Apartment Community, Burj Khalifa lying, being and situate at, Plot 160 Municipality NO 345-7562, Sky View Building No 1, Property No 401, Floor 4, Dubai U.A.E.”, were reasonably suspected to have been derived from illegal activity.