Bauchi Finance Commissioner Denied Bail In $9.7m Terrorism Financing Trial

The Federal High Court in Abuja has rejected a request for bail made by Bauchi State’s Commissioner for Finance, Yakubu Adamu, and several others standing trial with him over allegations of financing terrorism to the value of 9.7 million dollars.

In his ruling on Monday, Justice Emeka Nwite said the charges against them raise serious concerns for national security and public safety.

The judge explained that crimes linked to terrorism can destabilize society and that granting bail before trial could put the public at risk.

He, however, ordered the case to move quickly, noting that although the Constitution presumes every accused person innocent until proven guilty, that principle does not automatically guarantee bail.

“I am not unmindful of the constitutional provision of Section 36(5) which provides that every person who is charged with a criminal offence shall be presumed innocent until he is proven guilty.

“But I must not hesitate to state that the said constitutional provision is not absolutely right. In the consideration of an application for bail, all factors have to be considered,” Justice Nwite said.

Citing the 2001 case of Bamaiyi v. The State, the judge noted that the Supreme Court held that “it is proper to consider the nature of the offence, the nature of the evidence in support of it, and the severity of the punishment which conviction will entail.”

He said the court had taken these critical factors, including the likelihood of the defendants standing trial, into account, stressing that “these are not matters that should be glossed over.”

“I cannot say more than this erudite jurist. Our criminal justice system has its stipulations and safeguards for the prosecutor, the accused and the victim.

“In the proper operation of that system, it can be said that it is in the interest of the society, and with those safeguards, that if in an application for bail pending trial there is good reason to believe or strongly agree that the accused will not jump bail, thereby making himself available to stand trial, and/or will not interfere with witnesses thereby constituting an obstacle in the way of justice, the court will be acting within its undoubted discretion to grant bail.

“I have carefully considered the affidavit evidence available before me at this point in time.

“And I have also considered the proof of evidence, especially the statement of Dan Lawan Abdulmumuni and other prosecution witnesses, together with the grave threat to national security and public safety this case poses.

“And I have also taken cognizance that terrorism-related offences threaten social order and that pre-trial release could endanger the public,” the judge said.

“In my view, the prosecution/respondent has succeeded in raising a reasonable presumption of criminal responsibility on the part of the applicants (Adamu and co-defendants).

“In view of the foregoing, I am of the humble view, and I so hold, that the interest of justice will be met by giving the matter accelerated hearing.

“Consequently, the application is hereby refused,” he added.

Justice Nwite thereafter announced January 13 as the date for the trial to begin.

Adamu and his co-defendants — Balarabe Abdullahi Ilelah, Aminu Mohammed Bose, and Kabiru Yahaya Mohammed — are currently being held at Kuje Correctional Centre.

They were arraigned on December 31, 2025, on 10 counts filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Prosecutors allege that, between January and May 2024, the defendants and others now at large conspired to provide millions of dollars in cash to support individuals linked to terrorism.

In a separate case last Friday, the court granted Adamu bail in a different money-laundering matter, setting the bail sum at N500 million with two sureties who must own property in high-brow areas of Abuja, subject to verification by the court registry.

KanyiDaily recalls that an FCT High Court recently granted bail to former Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, who is facing charges related to money laundering and abuse of office.