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 over an alleged $2.33 million money laundering scheme.
Bodejo appeared before Justice Inyang Edem Ekwo on Wednesday on a 12-count charge bordering on money laundering.
He pleaded not guilty to all the charges brought against him by the anti-graft agency.
During the proceedings, the prosecution counsel, Wahab Shittu (SAN), informed the court of the 12-count charge dated June 24 and filed on June 25, 2026.
He urged the court to allow the defendant to take his plea, a request that was granted.
According to the EFCC, one of the charges alleges that Bodejo unlawfully accepted a cash payment of $100,000 from Sa’idu Abubakar, a former Accountant-General of Bauchi State, on January 11, 2022, in Abuja.
The commission alleged that the transaction exceeded the statutory cash threshold of N5 million under the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011, and was not conducted through a financial institution as required by law.
Another charge alleges that on February 7, 2024, Bodejo received an additional cash payment of $980,000 from the same former Bauchi State Accountant-General, contrary to the provisions of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
The EFCC further stated that both transactions violated provisions of Nigeria’s anti-money laundering laws, which require large cash transactions to be routed through financial institutions.
Following Bodejo’s plea of not guilty, Shittu requested the court to fix a trial date and order that the defendant be remanded in the custody of the Nigerian Correctional Service pending further proceedings.
However, counsel to the defendant, 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, citing a 28-paragraph counter-affidavit filed on July 6, 2026.
Shittu argued that Bodejo posed a public risk, claiming that the Department of State Services (DSS) was also interested in him.
He further contended that the defendant’s influence could interfere with witnesses and affect the progress of the trial if granted bail.
After hearing both parties, Justice Ekwo declined to rule immediately on the bail request.
Instead, he ordered that Bodejo be remanded in the EFCC’s holding facility.
The judge subsequently adjourned the case until July 20, 2026, when the court is expected to deliver its ruling on the bail application.
