We arrested him (Yahaya Bello) at 12.54pm; he did not surrender himself to the commission.”
By Deborah Hassan
365Daily – The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has said the immediate past governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, did not turn himself in at the agency’s Abuja headquarters, but was arrested by its officials.
A statement issued on Tuesday, November 26, 2024, EFCC Spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, published by NAN, disclosed that the former governor of Kogi was arrested at about 12 54 p.m on Tuesday and detained in its Abuja office.
He added that Bello, who had been declared wanted by the commission, never turned himself in but was arrested at 12: 54pm.
‘‘We arrested him (Yahaya Bello) at 12.54pm; he did not surrender himself to the commission, three of his lawyers are here with him. Following his arrest, he is having a session with investigators of the commission. He is being detained in our custody and he is going to be arraigned in court accordingly,” he said.
Earlier in the day, it was reported that Bello drove himself in a black Hilux to the anti-graft agency, accompanied by his lawyers after several failed attempts by the EFCC to get him to appear in court for trial over misappropriation of multi-billion naira funds belonging to Kogi State.
On request by the EFCC, the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Maitama, Abuja, had in its last hearing on November 14, set tomorrow, November 27, 2024, to hear the fresh case instituted against the former governor as the 30 days window was still running for the summons earlier issued.
The EFCC, however, admitted his co-defendants, Umar Oricha and Abdulsalami Hudu, to administrative bail and prayed to the court for an extension of time for the 1st Defendant to appear.