A prosecution witness on Tuesday refuted allegations that officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission threatened Ali Bello and his co-defendant with an electric chair to obtain statements in the ongoing ₦10.27 billion fraud trial before the Federal High Court, Abuja.
The Second Prosecution Witness (PW2), Yazid Bawa, testified during a trial-within-trial before Justice James Omotosho at the court’s Maitama division on February 17, 2026. He dismissed claims by the defence that the defendants were coerced while in EFCC custody.
Ali Bello, a nephew of former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Adoza Bello, is standing trial alongside Dauda Sulaiman on an amended 16-count charge bordering on alleged misappropriation and money laundering amounting to ₦10,270,556,800.00.
Led in evidence by Director of Public Prosecution, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, Bawa—an EFCC investigator—denied that any officer threatened Sulaiman with an electric chair.
“No one. In fact, I have never seen one before,” he told the court, maintaining that the defendants made their statements voluntarily and without any form of coercion.
The Third Prosecution Witness (PW3), Adamu Usman Yusuf, who headed the investigative team, also rejected allegations of intimidation. He stated that defence counsel was present during the statement-taking process and that the defendants were neither harassed nor pressured.
“If my lord goes through the statements, he will see places where he (the second defendant) said he would not comment or that he could not say anything. Throughout, Abbas (defence counsel) was present and one other lady. At lunch, they ate and then we continued,” Yusuf said.
When shown Exhibits TWT A and B, the witness confirmed that the defendants were not compelled to write their statements and noted that the cautionary words were duly signed.
Addressing the issue of detention, Yusuf told the court that the second defendant was held after failing to produce a surety. He also explained that the statements were not audio-visually recorded because they were confessional in nature, adding that defence counsel did not raise any complaint of maltreatment at the time.
Under cross-examination by A.M. Aliyu, SAN, counsel to the first defendant, who alleged that Bello was told he would “rot in jail” if he failed to attribute certain properties to Yahaya Bello, the witness responded, “My lord, that is not true.”
Following the conclusion of cross-examination by counsel to the second defendant, both defence lawyers sought an adjournment to enable them open and close their case.
The sub-trial was initiated to determine the voluntariness of the defendants’ extra-judicial statements after claims that the EFCC obtained them under duress.
Justice Omotosho subsequently adjourned proceedings to February 18, 2026, for the defence to present and conclude its case, and for continuation of hearing.
