The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned the leader of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, Bello Abdullahi Bodejo, before the Federal High Court in Abuja on a 12-count charge bordering on alleged money laundering involving about $2.33 million.
Bodejo was brought before Justice Inyang Edem Ekwo on Thursday, where he pleaded not guilty to all the charges.
At the commencement of proceedings, the prosecution counsel, Wahab Shittu, SAN, informed the court of the 12-count charge dated June 24 and filed on June 25, 2026, urging the court to allow the defendant to take his plea. Justice Ekwo granted the request.
According to the EFCC, the charges stem from alleged cash transactions carried out outside the banking system in violation of Nigeria’s Money Laundering laws.
One of the charges alleges that Bodejo, on January 11, 2022, knowingly accepted $100,000 in cash from a former Accountant-General of Bauchi State, Sa’idu Abubakar, without routing the transaction through a financial institution as required by law.
The commission alleged that the transaction exceeded the statutory cash transaction threshold of ₦5 million prescribed under the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended), thereby constituting an offence punishable under the Act.
Another count accuses the Miyetti Allah leader of receiving $980,000 in cash from the same former state official on February 7, 2024, also outside the banking system and in contravention of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
The EFCC alleged that the cumulative cash transactions forming the basis of the charges amount to approximately $2.33 million.
Following Bodejo’s plea of not guilty, prosecution counsel requested the court to fix a date for trial and order that the defendant be remanded in the custody of the Nigerian Correctional Service pending the determination of the case.
However, defence counsel, Ahmed Raji, SAN, urged the court to grant his client bail, relying on an application filed on June 30, 2026.
The prosecution opposed the application, drawing the court’s attention to a 28-paragraph counter-affidavit filed on July 6, 2026.
Shittu argued that the defendant constituted a flight risk and could interfere with witnesses if released on bail, adding that the Department of State Services (DSS) was also interested in the matter. He further contended that Bodejo’s influence could jeopardise the ongoing investigation and prosecution.
