WorldStage– The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has launched a high-profile investigation into alleged off-books cash disbursements by Bauchi State, highlighting payments totaling nearly $17 million to various individuals, including $2.33 million to Bello Bodejo, national president of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore.
The payments, described in EFCC filings and Bauchi State records, were labeled as “security commitments” but were reportedly made entirely outside the formal banking system, raising serious questions about transparency and potential links to terrorism financing.
According to court documents, Bodejo received the funds in four cash tranches between December 2023 and March 2024 at private locations in Abuja, including restaurants and residences.
The breakdown includes $100,000 on December 26, 2023; $980,000 on February 7, 2024; $750,000 on March 3, 2024; and $500,000 on March 20, 2024.
Intermediaries, such as businessman Yakubu Takai and bureau de change operator Danlawan Abdulmumini, reportedly delivered the cash without obtaining receipts.
Takai told EFCC investigators: “All the United States of America dollars totaling $2,330,000, I personally handed over in cash to Bello Bodejo.”
The total pool of unauthorized disbursements was approximately $16,985,000 plus N75.2 million, released between January and July 2024, as outlined in a memo by Bauchi’s then-Accountant General, Sa’idu Abubakar.
The memo sought to regularize the payments, which Abubakar said were made at the governor’s verbal direction via phone calls, texts, and WhatsApp messages, though he claimed not to know the purpose.
The disbursements occurred amid security concerns surrounding Bodejo and Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, which has faced allegations of involvement in violent herder-farmer clashes, kidnappings, and ethnic militia activity across northern and central Nigeria.
Bodejo was detained multiple times in 2024 and faced terrorism-related charges that were later withdrawn without explanation.
Some of the payments reportedly overlapped with his detention period, prompting questions about how the funds were accessed or used.
On December 30, 2025, the EFCC filed 10 counts of terrorism financing and money laundering against Bauchi Finance Commissioner Yakubu Adamu and three civil servants, who are alleged to have conspired to provide $2.33 million in cash to Bodejo with knowledge it could fund terrorism.
The defendants pleaded not guilty, and bail was denied. Governor Bala Mohammed, though not charged due to immunity, is implicated in approving the payments.
The case has sparked debate over off-books government spending in Nigeria, particularly in security-sensitive areas, and the EFCC investigation is seen as a key test of accountability and anti-terrorism enforcement.
Governor Mohammed has denounced the probe as politically motivated, while EFCC maintains it is strictly evidence-based.
Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore has denied involvement in violence or terrorism, and public reactions remain sharply divided.
