Immediate past Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello has finally arrived in the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, in Abuja, for arraignment on alleged N110bn fraud charges.
Bello, who was declared wanted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission in April this year, submitted himself at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja on Tuesday and was quizzed by operatives of the anti-graft commission.
Daily Query reports that heavily armed operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC) have mounted security at the venue of the trial.
Bello had tried in several ways to thwart his trial, including getting his successor Usman Ododo to lead other State Governors to challenge the legally establishing EFCC, in court.
The Supreme Court would appear to have stopped Bello in his tracks when it ruled last week that EFCC was validly established by law.
It has been speculated that Bello’s voluntary surrender to the EFCC for the second time in a row followed his realisation that there was no more hiding place for him.
The ex- Governor who arrived at the court premises dressed in white Babanriga was beaming with smiles while acknowledging praises of “Saaki’ from his teeming followers and political aides.
Since filing the charges against Bello, the EFCC has not been able to bring him to court for arraignment until the ex-Governor surrendered himself for formal arrest by the anti-graft agency.
The EFCC had initially filed 19 charges against Bello, along with his nephews Ali Bello, Dauda Suliman and Abdulsalam Hudu for money laundering offences amounting to over N80bn.
Follow us on all social media platforms @dailyquery for more stories around the globe.
