The Federal High Court in Abuja has granted Bello Bodejo, the national president of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, bail of N2 billion. This is in connection with his trial for alleged money laundering involving $2.63 million.
Judge Inyang Ekwo approved Mr Bodejo's bail with two sureties also worth N2 billion. The trial is set to start on 5, 6, and 7 October.
As part of the bail terms, one surety must live in Abuja and have a three-year tax clearance certificate. The second surety must own property in Abuja valued at N2 billion. The judge ordered the court registrar to check the property’s title documents.
Mr Bodejo must also deposit his international passport with the court. He is not allowed to travel outside Nigeria without the court's permission.
Judge Ekwo stated that the offences are bailable and that the court can choose to grant bail. The court had previously reserved its decision on Mr Bodejo's bail request on 9 July after listening to arguments from both sides.
Mr Bodejo is facing claims of laundering around $2.63 million. He pleaded not guilty after the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) read the charges to him. After his arraignment, the judge ordered him to stay in EFCC custody while waiting for the bail ruling.
The EFCC, represented by lawyer Wahab Shittu, who is a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), filed the charges against Mr Bodejo as the only defendant. After Mr Bodejo's plea, Mr Shittu asked for a trial date and requested that the court keep him in custody.
Defence lawyer Ahmed Raji, also a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, told the court that he had submitted a bail application on 30 June. He argued that the charges relate to money laundering, which he claimed are bailable offences under the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), 2015. He asked the court to grant bail to his client.
After the plea, Mr Shittu requested a trial date and asked the court to keep Mr Bodejo in custody. The prosecution opposed the bail request.
Mr Shittu stated that the EFCC submitted a 28-paragraph document opposing the bail application. "We adopt all our processes in opposition to the application, my lord," he said.
He added that Mr Bodejo's affidavit showed he had been detained by the Department of State Services (DSS) for other offences. The prosecutor argued that allowing bail could lead to more offences.
Mr Shittu also dismissed claims of the defendant's ill health, saying the alleged injury was not new and Mr Bodejo looked fine in court. He argued that Mr Bodejo might interfere with prosecution witnesses if released. He urged the court to impose strict conditions if bail was granted.
After hearing both sides, Judge Ekwo postponed the case until today (20 July) to decide on the bail request. He ordered Mr Bodejo to stay in EFCC custody until then.
According to reports from June, the EFCC stated it had filed charges against Mr Bodejo. This was over claims of cash payments he received from the former Accountant General of Bauchi State, Yakubu Adamu.
The EFCC alleged that Mr Bodejo accepted large cash payments outside the banking system, violating Nigeria’s money laundering laws. This led to the charges filed in the Federal High Court in Abuja, resulting in Thursday's arraignment.
On 30 December 2025, the EFCC charged Mr Adamu and three civil servants in Bauchi with terrorism financing and money laundering for funds given to Mr Bodejo and others.
According to the charges, Mr Bodejo allegedly accepted several cash payments from former Bauchi State Accountant General Sa’idu Abubakar between January 2022 and March 2024 without going through a financial institution as required by law.
In the first count, the EFCC claimed Mr Bodejo received $100,000 in cash from Sa’idu Abubakar on 11 January 2022 without lawful authority. The second count accused him of taking another $200,000 on 21 January 2022 under the same conditions.
The third count alleged he received $100,000 from the former accountant general on 26 October 2022. The fourth count claimed he accepted $980,000 in cash on 7 February 2024.
The fifth count accused him of receiving another $750,000 in cash on 3 March 2024. The sixth count alleged he took $500,000 from Mr Abubakar on 20 March 2024.
Each of these transactions exceeded the cash limit set by the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended) and the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, as the payments were made outside the banking system.
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