ABUJA, Nigeria — The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is set to arraign Bello Abdullahi Bodejo before a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja over a 12-count charge bordering on terrorism financing and money laundering to the tune of $2.530 million.
The anti-graft agency filed the formal charges on Monday, June 22, 2026, alleging that the defendant knowingly accepted and possessed large volumes of physical foreign currency linked to the proceeds of unlawful activities.
Okay News reports that Bodejo, who possesses established ties to Bauchi State Governor Bala Mohammed, is accused of violating the provisions of both the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended) and the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, by failing to route the financial transactions through regular banking institutions.
According to the details of the charge sheet, the funds were allegedly received in cash tranches from Sa’idu Abubakar, the former Accountant-General of Bauchi State, who is currently held in the custody of the Nigerian Police Force. Count one of the charge alleges that on January 11, 2022, Bodejo accepted physical cash of $100,000 from Abubakar, an amount that significantly bypassed the legal statutory cash transaction threshold of ₦5 million without financial institution clearance.
Subsequent counts detailed in the court documents outline further cash deliveries between the two parties. Count two states that Bodejo accepted an additional $200,000 in physical currency on January 21, 2022. The financial scale escalated in 2024, with count four revealing that the defendant accepted a cash payment of $980,000 on February 7, 2024, followed by another tranche of $500,000 documented on March 20, 2024.
Furthermore, count ten of the suit charges Bodejo with taking possession of the $980,000 under circumstances where he knew, or reasonably ought to have known, that the funds formed part of the proceeds of an unlawful activity. The EFCC is currently awaiting a formal assignment of the case to a trial judge to enable the defendant to take his plea as criminal proceedings commence.
