₦1.63bn Bauchi Funds Scandal: UBA Officer Tells Court How Millions Flowed From Treasury Account To Private Firm
A compliance officer with United Bank for Africa, UBA, Williams Abimbola, has told a Federal High Court in Abuja how about ₦1.635bn allegedly moved from a Bauchi State Government sub-treasury account to a private company, JASFAD Resources Enterprises.
Abimbola, who appeared as the first prosecution witness in the trial of Bauchi State Accountant-General, Sirajo Muhammed Jaja, and four others, gave details of several transactions allegedly made from the government account to the company.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission is prosecuting Jaja and the four other defendants on an amended five-count charge bordering on money laundering, diversion of public funds and criminal misappropriation involving the disputed sum.
The other defendants are Aliyu Abubakar, Abubakar Muhammed Hafiz, Ari Manga and Muhammed Aminu Bose.
The witness gave the evidence on Monday before Justice Obiora Egwuatu while explaining transactions contained in the relevant bank records.
According to the prosecution, the defendants were signatories to Bauchi State sub-treasury accounts from which funds were allegedly transferred to JASFAD Resources Enterprises, a company said to be managed by Aliyu Abubakar.
Abimbola told the court that, as a compliance officer, the bank received requests from law enforcement agencies and responded to enquiries relating to customers’ transactions.
She subsequently walked the court through a series of payments allegedly made from the Bauchi sub-treasury account to JASFAD.
The witness said that on October 29, 2024, three separate credit transfers were made into JASFAD’s account from the Bauchi sub-treasury account.
The transfers, she said, were ₦13.14m, ₦17.17m and ₦46.03m.
She further testified that the alleged payments continued on different dates between November 2024 and March 2025.
Among the transactions presented before the court was a ₦140.09m transfer on November 22, 2024.
She also listed two major transfers made on December 27, 2024 — ₦335.04m and ₦300m — alongside other payments running into millions of naira.
Continuing with the transaction trail, Abimbola told the court that on February 25, 2025, the sub-treasury account allegedly transferred ₦19.84m and ₦13.02m to JASFAD Resources.
The witness further listed payments of ₦16.1m, ₦56.64m, ₦45.92m, ₦11.25m, ₦49.28m, ₦30.72m and ₦28.26m between March 3 and March 14, 2025.
She said the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission had produced the relevant Bauchi State account statement as well as the bank’s written statement in support of its case.
The evidence forms part of the prosecution’s attempt to establish its allegations against the defendants.
However, the defendants have not been convicted of the offences and remain entitled to challenge the prosecution’s evidence.
Defence counsel told the court that they would cross-examine the witness at another sitting.
Justice Egwuatu thereafter adjourned the matter until October 22, 2026, for continuation of the cross-examination and further proceedings.
