Jamilu Abdullahi, an Abuja-based Bureau de Change operator and third prosecution witness in the trial of Ali Bello, on Thursday, September 26, 2024, gave a narrative of the financial transactions between him and the Kogi State government under former governor, Yahaya Bello before Justice Obiora Egwuatu of the Federal High Court, Maitama Abuja.

The rundown includes how the former governor repeatedly paid the school fees of his three daughters in dollars through him and his companies.

Ali Bello, the current Chief of Staff to Kogi State Governor, Usman Ododo, is the nephew of Yahaya Bello. He is facing prosecution by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC on 18-count charges of money laundering and misappropriation to the tune of over N3 billion, alongside Abba Daudu, Yakubu Adabenege, and Iyada Sadat.

Led in evidence by the prosecution counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, the witness disclosed that in one of the occasions, Daudu, the second defendant brought $300,000 (Three Hundred Thousand Dollars) in cash to him for the payment of Yahaya Bello’s daughters’ school fees. “Abba Daudu called me to say that they have a transaction though it was on the weekend, but I drove down to the office and waited for them to come. Upon their arrival, three of them came. One of them stayed in the car with the driver, two of them walked to my office and a friend of Abba Daudu was holding black leather bag containing $300,000.

“Upon entering, he greeted and Abba Daudu introduced him as his friend and business partner saying he has a transaction. He dropped $300,000 in cash. I wanted to count the dollars before they left, but I could not due to the power outage. I told him I cannot use my hands and needed to confirm that it was $300,000, so I locked the dollars in my office safe and two of them left. Then, Abba Daudu’s friend said when I confirmed the sum, details will be forwarded to me for payment. However, the sum of $300,000 attracts some service charges which he said I should calculate and let Abba Daudu know. After I completed the transfer, I forwarded four receipts indicating $75,000 four times to Abba Daudu, and he confirmed to me that the payment was confirmed successfully,” he said.

When asked by the prosecution counsel if he knew anything regarding the transactions on Exhibit D, Pages 50, 52 and 53, he said “Yes I know the transactions of $75,000, being paid to the school four times totalling, the sum of $300,000 as forwarded by Abba Daudu and further confirmed that the fees was paid for one of Yahaya Bello’s daughters. “And the name of the recipient is Naima Ohunene Bello,” he said.

Another payment of the fees, he recalled, was done by a company, Aleshua Solutions Services which, he said paid the sum of $42,170 for Naima Ohunene Bello. “It was paid on behalf of the student Naima Ohunene Bello for school fees based on the instruction and as forwarded by Abba Daudu, and the date is 24th January, 2022.”

On Page 7 of the Exhibit D, was $78,160 he identified as payment for school fees through Aleshua Solutions Services in respect of another Yahaya Bello’s daughter, Fatima Oziohu Bello. “Based on the receipt before me, I am seeing acknowledgement of $78,135 being paid for Fatima Bello and on the Aleshua Solutions Services.

On Page One of Exhibit D, he identified a transaction of $44,675 also for Naima Bello. “I have seen it on the receipt of the payment. Forty-four thousand, seven hundred dollars, ($44,700) was paid to the school, but due to internal charges from the bank, $25 dollars was deducted, making the total balance of $44,675.00,” he said.

The beneficiary school, he told the court, was American International School (AIS).Regarding transactions from Daudu’s company, Keyless Nature Limited to his own Kunfayakun company’s account on December 15 and 17, 2021, he said: “I received the sum of N100 million on the 15th December 2021 from Keyless Nature. On the 17th December, 2021, I received N400 million. Meanwhile on the 21st, 22nd and 23rd, December 2021, I received N100 million. On the 22nd December 2021, I received the sum of N100 million only. On the 23rd December 2021, I received N35 million.

“I also received payment from Remita International in the sum of N40 million on 12th December, 2021, and there was an entry of N33 million on the 17th of December 2021. On the 7th February 2022, I confirmed the receipt of N90 million from Keyless Nature,” he said.

Counsel to Ali Bello, first defendant A.M Aliyu, who wished to cross-examine the witness, asked for adjournment to enable him study and have a full grasp of the massive facts and figures involved. Nurain Jimoh, counsel to the second, third and fourth defendant, agreed with him, while the prosecution counsel objected to the adjournment on the account that the witness has been in the dock since February 6, 2023. “I believe the cross-examination of PW 3 should begin. If there are other grounds, however, the application can be sustained. If not, I urge your lordship to turn it down.

Justice Egwuatu adjourned the matter till October 25, 2024 and November 5 and 6, 2024 for continuation of trial.

It could be recalled that while testifying on Tuesday, September 24, 2024, the witness identified that Page 9 of Exhibit D, also contained $11,000 payment by Whales Oil and Gas to AIS, which was done based on Daudu’s directive being the one who gave him the account details into which he made the payment.

He further explained on the same date that exhibits16, 17, 18, 19, 20 and 21 were all payments to AIS. Exhibit 16, he said, captured payments of $7,653 to Bello Nana Fatima. The same he said applied to the payment of $19,296 on Page 17 and $7,725 on Page 18, while pages 19, 20 and 21 captured payments of $6,611.29, $21,470 and $21,492 respectively in favour of Zahra Bello.

He also narrated on September 24, 2024 how cash lodgments running into millions of naira were made into his E-Traders International Limited and Kunfayakun companies’ accounts as well as to his personal account by Daudu.

According to him, on July 27, 2021 he received N10 million and on August 19, 2012, there was a cash deposit of N100 million in N10 million tranches and N100 million deposit on August 25, 2021.

On August 30, 2021, he disclosed that there was N63 million deposit and an additional N50 million, a day later on August 31, 2021 into his account. He further disclosed that on September 2, 2021, there was a double N30 million lodgment totaling N60 million.

He stated that the inflows into his accounts continued on October 8, 2021, with a transfer of N60 million and a double inflow of N130 million and N139.5 million on November 4, 2021.

On November 10, 2021, N25,134,000, flowed in; another N50 million, he said, flowed in on November 12, 2021and N200 million on November 30, 2021. The inflows, he said, continued on December 1, 2012 with N220 million and N16,008,000 on December 3, 2021. On December 22, 2012, he said N40 million flowed in from the same source.

The witness in his September 24, 2024 testimony also admitted that Kayless Nature Limited made a deposit of N100 million to him on December 21, 2021 with the authorization of the second defendant.

On December 22, 2021, another N100 million, he said, flowed in from Kayless Nature Limited, and another N60 million from the company on December 29, 2021.

The financial traffic continued on the New Year. According to him, on January 18, 2022, N40 million flowed in and continued thereafter. “On the 19th of January, 2022, I received N50 million, while on the 24th, 2022, I received N30 million, and on the 28 of that same January, 2022, I received N40 million cash in four tranches, and another N120 million. On January 31, 2022, I received an inflow of N160 million, while on February 1,2022, I received N110 million, and N150 million on February 8, 2022,” he said.

He further disclosed that on March 2, 2022, a total of N84 million was deposited in his account with another lodgment of N122, 980,000 on March 10, 2022 and N60 million on March 21, 2022.

On April 5, 2022, he stated that N150 million flowed in and N140 million, a day after on April 6, 2022.

Delta State government on Thursday warned medical personnel who provide any underage girl child abortion pills, and contraception that endangered her life to desist outright or face prosecution at the court of law.

The State Commissioner for Justice and Attorney General (AG), Ohwovoriole Ekemejero (SAN) gave the warning at the World Contraception Day held in Asaba, the State capital.

Ohwovoriole who spoke via the Director Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence unit, Mrs. Patricia Akanagwuna, said providing minor access to these facilities without the consent of the girl child’s parents or guardian is illegal in the eye of the law, and those involved must be punished accordingly.

He however advised the medical personnel to as principles, “allowed individual women to make informed choices about their reproductive health, free from coercion or judgment, in addition to Protecting their right to confidentiality when seeking contraceptive services.”

A Senior Lecturer, the University of Benin (UNIBEN) and Project Director, University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH), Dr. Jedidiah Sodje disclosed that Nigeria is currently facing significant challenges in maternal and child health.

According to him, “statistics revealed that the Country is having the highest maternal and child mortality rates in the world, leading to the death of approximately 512 woman per 100,000 live births, and one in eight children does not reach their fifth birthday”.

To reduce these alarming statistics, Sodje advised “we key into family planning”, saying it provides individuals and couples with the means to decide the number and spacing of their children

He noted that family planning empowers women to plan their lives and secure healthier futures for their family.

“When women access contraceptive methods, they are more likely to avoid unplanned and unwanted pregnancies, which are often associated with higher risks of maternal and child mortality,” he said.

He said effective family planning programs help to space pregnancies to allow mothers’ bodies to recover fully between births.

“This is crucial as closely spaced pregnancies increase the risk of complications that can result in long-lasting morbidities and mortality.

“Family planning enables adolescents and youth to attain better heights in education and be able to contribute more significantly to national development.”

A High Court sitting in Ilorin on Thursday sentenced five men charged with the Offa bank robbery incident to death by hanging.

The court convicted Ayoade Akinnibosun, Azeez Salahudeen, Niyi Ogundiran, Ibikunle Ogunleye and Adeola Abraham.

Delivering judgment, Justice Haleema Saliman held that the five defendants were found guilty of conspiracy, armed robbery, culpable homicide, and illegal possession of firearms.

Saliman said that the defendants caused the deaths of people, including a police officers and civilians during the armed robbery in Offa, on April, 2018, which is punishable by death.

Earlier, the lead prosecuting counsel, Rotimi Jacob (SAN) said that the prosecution was able to prove his case beyond reasonable doubt and the judgement was done accordingly.

Jacob said that the six year spent on the case was worth it, as evidence clearly showed that the convicts were involved in the robbery and killings.

He said that the trials had been concluded and the prosecutors had proved their case beyond reasonable doubt for the suspects to be convicted.

The lead defence counsel, Nathaniel Emeribe, represented by Abdullahi Jimba said that the judgment was not surprising, considering the evidence presented in court, it had been envisaged that it would end that way.

He, however, said that in line with the case of AG Oyo state with Bello, there would definitely be an appeal and record would be compiled and moved to the court of appeal.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the prime suspect, a policeman, Michael Adikwu died in police custody during the trial while the remaining five pleaded for mercy but were convicted.

The Ebonyi State government has announced that it sealed four mining companies due to non-compliance with the dictates of the Community Development Agreement (CDA).

The Commissioner for Solid Minerals and Natural Resources, Hon. Chidi Onyia made the announcement on Wednesday.

Onyia after leading a joint task force operation to seal off the companies said the Ebonyi State Government gave the miners enough time to comply with the agreement but they all failed.

“The companies were given enough time, since July last year, to meet the CDA requirements but chose to ignore the rules,” he said.

“The closed companies include Anli Mining and Investment Ltd, China Solid Rock 1 and 2, located in Ngodo Amachi in the Afikpo Local Government Area (LGA) and Shenglong Mining located in Eziulo in the Ishielu Council.”

It was further revealed that no fewer than ten local workers were laid off at China Solid Rock 2, a mining company owned by Chinese nationals in the Afikpo area.

This development, as stated by Onyia violates the principles of the agreement and mining regulations.

The commissioner added that the sites will remain sealed off until the companies comply with the directives of the Ebonyi State Government as regards mining.

“Ebonyi people are being treated like they have no value. The Mining Act clearly states that every miner must prepare a CDA to benefit and uplift the community where they operate,” he said.

“However, most mining companies in Ebonyi State have ignored this. This is against the dictates of the state and we won’t take it anymore.

“The land belongs to the people and even though these companies have leases from the Federal Government, they must ensure the communities benefit from their operations.”

Onyia also hit out at the operators of Shenglong Mining, describing their CDA as fraudulent.

“The agreement Shenglong provided is fraudulent. There are clear procedures and templates for developing a CDA. How can a company of this size justify that the community’s only benefit is one million naira annually?,” he asked.

“We have companies here in Ebonyi that are constructing tarred roads for their host communities. Why is Shenglong different?

“I assure that the state government will continue to monitor all activities to ensure all companies follow the law and any company found breaking the rules will be shut down.”

A 64-year-old US woman took her own life inside a controversial suicide capsule at a Swiss woodland retreat, with police on Tuesday saying several people had been arrested.

The space-age looking Sarco capsule, which fills with nitrogen and causes death by hypoxia, was used on Monday outside a village near the German border.

The portable human-sized pod, self-operated by a button inside, has raised a host of legal and ethical questions in Switzerland. Active euthanasia is banned in the country but assisted dying has been legal for decades.

On the same day it was used, Switzerland’s Interior Minister Elisabeth Baume-Schneider told lawmakers that the Sarco was “not legal”.

Police in the northern Schaffhausen canton said several people had been taken into custody and face criminal proceedings.

– ‘Peaceful, fast, dignified’ –

The Last Resort, an assisted dying organisation, presented the Sarco pod in Zurich in July, saying they expected it to be used for the first time within months, and saw no legal obstacle to its use in Switzerland.

In a statement to AFP, The Last Resort said the person who died, who was not named, was a 64-year-old woman from the midwestern United States.

She “had been suffering for many years from a number of serious problems associated with severe immune compromise”, the statement said.

The death took place “under a canopy of trees, at a private forest retreat”.

The association’s co-president Florian Willet was the only other person present, and described the woman’s death as “peaceful, fast and dignified”, according to the statement.

– Warning given –

The cantonal public prosecutor’s office “has opened criminal proceedings against several people for inducement and aiding and abetting suicide… and several people have been placed in police custody,” a police statement said.

The public prosecutor’s office had been informed by a law firm on Monday that an assisted suicide had taken place at a forest hut in Merishausen.

The police, the forensic emergency service and the public prosecutor’s office “went to the crime scene”.

The Sarco suicide capsule was secured and the deceased taken away for an autopsy.

“We found the capsule with the lifeless person inside,” said Schaffhausen’s public prosecutor Peter Sticher.

He told Blick newspaper that several people were arrested “so that they were not colluding with each other or covering up evidence”.

Sticher said the operators knew the risks of being arrested.

“We warned them in writing. We said that if they came to Schaffhausen and used Sarco, they would face criminal consequences,” he said.

– Sarco: 3D-printable capsule –

The Sarco was invented by Philip Nitschke, a leading global figure in right-to-die activism.

The 3D-printable capsule cost more than 650,000 euros ($725,000) to research and develop in the Netherlands over 12 years. Future Sarcos could cost around 15,000 euros. The pods are reusable.

In a statement, Nitschke said he was “pleased that the Sarco had performed exactly as it had been designed to do: that is to provide an elective, non-drug, peaceful death at the time of the person’s choosing”.

To use the Sarco, the person wishing to die must first pass a psychiatric assessment.

The person climbs into the purple capsule, closes the lid, and is asked automated questions such as who they are, where they are and if they know what happens when they press the button.

In July, Nitschke explained that once the button is pressed, the amount of oxygen in the air plummets from 21 percent to 0.05 percent in less than 30 seconds.

The person inside quickly loses consciousness before dying within around five minutes.

Nitschke’s Exit International organisation, which owns the Sarco, is a non-profit group funded by donations. The only cost for the user is 18 Swiss francs ($21) for the nitrogen.

– Suicide law –

In July, Willet said Switzerland was “by far the best place” for the Sarco to be used, due to its “wonderful liberal system”.

Swiss law generally allows assisted suicide if the person commits the lethal act themselves.

But interior minister Baume-Schneider, taking questions in parliament on Monday, said: “The Sarco suicide capsule is not legally compliant.”

“Firstly, it does not meet the requirements of product safety law and therefore cannot be placed on the market. Secondly, the corresponding use of nitrogen is not compatible with the purpose article of the Chemicals Act,” she said.

Fiona Stewart, who is on The Last Resort’s advisory board, said the group was acting on legal advice, which “since 2021 has consistently found that the use of Sarco in Switzerland would be lawful”.

A Saudi court sentenced a retired teacher to 30 years in jail for criticising the government on social media, less than two months after his death sentence was overturned, his brother said Tuesday.

The death sentence against Mohammed al-Ghamdi highlighted what critics describe as heightened repression under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the Gulf kingdom’s de facto ruler.

Prince Mohammed addressed the case in an interview with Fox News that aired in September 2023, saying the government was “ashamed” over it and expressing hope the outcome could be changed.

Ghamdi’s death sentence was overturned on appeal in August.

But the appeals court sentenced him to 30 years imprisonment on the same charges, his brother Saeed al-Ghamdi, an Islamic scholar who lives in Britain, told AFP.

Mohammed al-Ghamdi had been sentenced to death in July 2023 by the Specialised Criminal Court, which was set up in 2008 to deal with terrorism-related cases.

The former teacher, who is in his 50s, was arrested in June 2022.

The case against him was at least partly built on posts criticising the government and expressing support for “prisoners of conscience” like the jailed religious clerics Salman al-Awda and Awad al-Qarni, his brother has previously said.

His account on social media platform X had only nine followers, the Gulf Centre for Human Rights said when his legal troubles came to light last year.

The charges he faced included conspiracy against the Saudi leadership, undermining state institutions and supporting terrorist ideology, sources briefed on the details said at the time.

“This about-face in judgements testifies to the dramatic state of the kingdom’s politicised judicial system,” Saeed al-Ghamdi said on X.

“My brother is not guilty to be arrested and tried in this way,” he added.

The Saudi authorities could not immediately be reached for comment.

Human Rights Watch and Saeed al-Ghamdi reported last month that another brother, 47-year-old Asaad al-Ghamdi, had been sentenced to 20 years over critical social media posts.

There was no word on Tuesday on whether judges would also review Asaad al-Ghamdi’s sentence.

Under Prince Mohammed, Saudi Arabia has been pursuing an ambitious reform agenda known as Vision 2030 intended to transform the formerly closed-off kingdom into a global tourism and business destination.

However, Saudi authorities continue to take heat for the country’s rights record and restrictions on free speech in particular.