R-L: Gov Bala Mohammed and Bello Bodejo, the alleged Fulani terrorist leader.
The EFCC traced approximately ₦7.6 billion in suspicious transactions linked to these entities, involving transfers in Bauchi, Abuja, and Dubai.
The Bauchi State Government disbursed millions of dollars purportedly for security-related purposes between late 2023 and July 2024.
However, investigations, based on a review of government documents, financial records, and court filings, revealed that the funds were not released through banks or any official financial channels.
Instead, the money was paid in cash, handed over through intermediaries at locations such as restaurants, major markets, and private residences in Abuja.
A government official who participated in physically delivering the cash told the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) that no formal documentation or authorization papers were signed before the funds were handed over under the label of “security funds.”
According to government records and officials’ bank statements, one of the beneficiaries was Bello Bodejo, the leader of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, who had previously been charged by the Nigerian government for terrorism-related offences.
Bodejo reportedly spent six months in detention in 2024 over terrorism allegations.
However, the Attorney-General of the Federation later withdrew the charges without providing any explanation.
Evidence shows that the Bauchi State Government released $2.33 million in four separate cash payments.
In July 2024, the Bauchi State Accountant-General, Sa’idu Abubakar, wrote to Governor Bala Mohammed through the Secretary to the State Government seeking approval to regularize the unauthorized cash withdrawals made between January and July 2024.
Altogether, $17 million and ₦75.2 million were disbursed to various individuals, including Bodejo, within that period.
On December 30, 2025, the EFCC charged Yakubu Adamu and three other Bauchi State officials with terrorism financing and money laundering over funds allegedly paid to Bodejo and others.
Those charged include Yakubu Adamu, Bauchi State Commissioner for Finance; Balarabe Ilelah; Aminu Mohammed; and Kabiru Mohammed.
The EFCC alleged that the funds were used to finance terrorist activities.
Adamu was specifically accused of receiving $7 million through a scheme resembling large-scale money laundering, in collaboration with Bodejo, in violation of Nigeria’s anti-money laundering laws.
They were arraigned before the Federal High Court in Abuja on December 31, 2025, on terrorism financing charges.
Governor Bala Mohammed, who enjoys constitutional immunity as a sitting governor, strongly rejected the allegations against his close aides.
He accused the EFCC of political persecution and claimed that FCT Minister Nyesom Wike despite belonging to the same PDP party was orchestrating the investigation.
The EFCC dismissed these claims, insisting that the prosecution was based solely on evidence.
On January 6, 2026, Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja ruled that the allegations against Adamu and others were grave and supported by substantial evidence, and therefore denied them bail.
EFCC court filings, including witness statements from Bauchi government officials, detailed the systematic diversion of billions of naira from state accounts.
Bello Bodejo is the national leader of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, a Fulani-only organization that has increasingly positioned itself as a pressure group.
Media reports confirm that he was born in 1979 in Nasarawa State.
In January 2024, Bodejo launched a Fulani organization in Lafia, Nasarawa State, claiming it had the support of thousands of Fulani youths to improve farmer herder relations and provide intelligence to security agencies.
Security agencies however rejected this claim.
The Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) arrested him on January 23, 2024, accusing him of forming an ethnic militia called a “Peace Guard.”
The Nasarawa State Police stated that the group had no legal standing as a vigilante organization.
In March 2024, the Attorney-General of the Federation charged him with terrorism-related offences. His bail application was denied in April 2024.
On May 30, 2024, the Attorney-General withdrew the charges without explanation, leading to his release.
He was re-arrested by the Nigerian Army on December 9, 2024, handed over to the DSS, but a Federal High Court ordered his release on December 30, 2024.
Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore has been linked to violent clashes between herders and farmers in Benue, Nasarawa, and other states.
Some members have been accused of kidnapping, allegations the organization denies.
Former Accountant-General Sa’idu Abubakar told the EFCC that Governor Bala Mohammed personally authorized the payments to Bodejo between January and July 2024—often verbally or via WhatsApp.
“The governor gave the instructions verbally and through WhatsApp messages,” Abubakar stated.
“I did not know the purpose of the payments.”
He cited examples where the governor ordered monthly payments of ₦10 million to an individual named Nura Suleiman Sale, and ₦250 million to the Northern Elders Forum.
On June 22, 2024, the governor allegedly instructed him via WhatsApp to pay $100,000 to Bodejo.
The Commissioner for Finance, Yakubu Adamu, was reportedly present during some of these instructions.
A courier, Yakubu Takai, told the EFCC that he personally delivered $2.33 million to Bodejo on four occasions between December 2023 and March 2024 at locations including:
CT View Restaurant, Wuse Zone 4
Bodejo’s residence in Garki, Abuja
Some payments were made while Bodejo was officially in detention, raising serious legal contradictions.
Takai also stated that he delivered nearly $7 million to Commissioner Yakubu Adamu between April and July 2024 at supermarkets, restaurants, and government offices in Abuja—without receipts or documentation.
Several witnesses identified Danlawan Abdulmumini as the central coordinator of the cash movement.
Funds passed through multiple companies and bank accounts, including D-Nice City No.1 Ltd and AMY Trading Concept Ltd, before being converted to cash and distributed.
The EFCC traced approximately ₦7.6 billion in suspicious transactions linked to these entities, involving transfers in Bauchi, Abuja, and Dubai.
Although Adamu was granted bail on money laundering charges on January 2, 2026, the court denied him bail for terrorism financing on January 5, 2026.
The EFCC previously arrested another Accountant-General, Sirajo Jaja, in April 2025 over similar allegations.
The court has fixed January 13, 2026, for continuation of the terrorism financing trial.
