Proceedings in the trial of former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, were stalled on Thursday at the Federal High Court in Abuja following a legal disagreement between the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, and the defence team over the use of a document already admitted as evidence.
Justice Emeka Nwite adjourned the matter until April 24 to deliver a ruling on whether the anti-graft agency can re-present the document to one of its witnesses during the ongoing trial.
The dispute arose during the testimony of Abdullahi Jamilu, the prosecution’s 12th witness, who gave evidence concerning alleged financial transactions linked to the case.
Jamilu, identified in court as the owner of Kumfayakum Global Limited, told the court that he received funds from one Abba Adaudu, converted the money into United States dollars, and handed the cash back to him on different occasions.
According to the witness, the dollar exchanges and handovers took place either at his office or at the office of Abba Adaudu in Abuja.
However, during cross-reference with an earlier statement he made to the EFCC, the prosecution appeared to notice inconsistencies between his oral testimony and the contents of the written statement already tendered before the court as Exhibit 46.
Counsel to the EFCC, Kemi Pinheiro, SAN, then sought permission to show the witness the earlier statement in order to refresh his memory.
At that point, defence counsel, Joseph Daudu, SAN, objected strongly, arguing that the prosecution could not confront its own witness with a prior statement unless it first applied to have him declared a hostile witness.
Daudu told the court that the witness had already given clear oral testimony that the transactions happened only at the offices mentioned, and that the prosecution was now attempting to contradict or improve that evidence through the earlier statement.
He maintained that such a move would be contrary to the provisions of the Evidence Act unless proper legal procedure was followed.
According to the defence, once a party seeks to challenge the credibility of its own witness using a previous statement, the witness must first be declared hostile by the court.
In response, Pinheiro argued that the prosecution was not attempting to impeach the witness or treat him as hostile.
He said the intention was simply to refresh the witness’s memory, especially since the transactions in question reportedly took place in 2022.
The EFCC lawyer cited provisions of the Evidence Act which allow a witness to consult an earlier written statement to assist recollection while giving testimony.
He also relied on judicial authorities to support his position that the witness could be shown the statement without necessarily being declared hostile.
But the defence insisted that the cited authorities were irrelevant to the issue before the court.
Daudu further argued that the prosecution was effectively contradicting its own witness under the guise of memory refreshment, which he said was procedurally improper.
After listening to both sides, Justice Nwite adjourned the matter until April 24 for ruling and continuation of trial.
Earlier in his testimony, Jamilu denied personally making any cash deposits into the Lokoja branch of Access Bank Plc.
He said although his name, Abdullahi Jamilu or Jamilu Abdullahi, may have appeared as narration on some deposits, he did not personally carry out the transactions.
He told the court that certain deposits made on October 8, 2021, October 11, 2021, and March 17, 2022, were carried out by Abba Adaudu at the Lokoja branch.
According to him, after receiving the deposited funds from Adaudu, he converted the money into U.S. dollars and handed it back to him.
The witness was also shown bank account records admitted as Exhibit 37(1), relating to the account of Kumfayakum Global Limited.
He identified entries showing transfers from Keyless Nature Limited, including ₦100 million on December 15, 2021, and ₦400 million on December 17, 2021.
Jamilu further told the court that Keyless Nature Limited belongs to Abba Adaudu.
The trial of Yahaya Bello, who is facing allegations of financial misconduct, has continued to attract public attention as both prosecution and defence contest key evidence and witness testimony.
The court is expected to decide whether the EFCC can rely on the earlier statement to question its own witness before proceedings move forward.
