By Dalena Reporters Staff l December 30, 2025
ABUJA — In a major anti-corruption development in Nigeria, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Tuesday arraigned Yakubu Adamu, the Bauchi State Commissioner for Finance and former Polaris Bank branch manager, before Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Maitama, Abuja, on charges of alleged money laundering involving approximately ₦5.79 billion.
Adamu was formally docked alongside Ayab Agro Products and Freight Company Limited on a six-count indictment, brought under Section 21(a) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022. The charge sheet alleges a multifaceted conspiracy to conceal, divert, and use substantial public funds under false pretences.
Prosecuting counsel Samuel I. Chime opened proceedings by urging the court to read the charges to the defendants, a critical step enabling them to enter pleas. At the arraignment, Adamu entered a not guilty plea to all counts after the charges were formally read in open court.
Central to the prosecution’s case is an alleged scheme spanning June to December 2023, in which Adamu while serving as branch manager of Polaris Bank Plc’s Bauchi branch purportedly conspired with Ishaku Mohammed Aliyu and Muntaka Mohammed Duguri, both currently at large, to launder ₦4.65 billion. The funds originated from a bank facility ostensibly provided to Emmanuel Asomugha General Enterprises for the supply of motorcycles to Bauchi State Government a supply that, EFCC investigators assert, never materialized.
Another count alleges that Adamu acquired, retained, and transferred about ₦976 million into several accounts, knowing or having reasonable grounds to know that the funds were proceeds of unlawful activity linked to the diversion of the loan facility. Prosecutors contend that the transactions were structured to conceal the illicit origins of the funds.
Following the reading of charges and Adamu’s plea, the prosecution requested that the court remand the defendant in custody pending a ruling on his bail application. Defence counsel Gordy Uche, SAN, moved for bail on Adamu’s behalf, a request the prosecution opposed. After submissions from both sides, Justice Nwite adjourned proceedings to January 2, 2026, for ruling on the bail application and ordered that Adamu be remanded in EFCC custody until that date.
EFCC investigations further allege that Emmanuel Asomugha General Enterprises obtained the multi-billion-naira facility purportedly guaranteed by the Bauchi State Government, yet no motorcycles were ever supplied despite representations to the bank suggesting otherwise. According to the agency, Asomugha told investigators that he received funds through Adamu and the former Bauchi State Accountant-General, Sa’idu Abubakar, and was directed to transfer sums to multiple accounts, including to the second defendant company.
The matter adds to a series of high-profile cases in which the EFCC has pursued senior public officials and associates in connection with alleged financial crimes, amid ongoing public debate over governance transparency and accountability in Nigeria’s fiscal management.