Court Told El-Rufai Allegedly Set Aside $600,000 for EFCC Officials, Witness Says

A Department of State Services forensic investigator has told a court that former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai and some people connected to him allegedly set aside $600,000 to pay Economic and Financial Crimes Commission officials and middlemen. The claim was made on Tuesday by Segun Kayode, the first prosecution witness in El-Rufai's ongoing trial, before Justice Darius Khobo at the Kaduna State High Court in Kawo. Kayode said audio forensic recordings captured discussions involving the former governor and suspected associates about attempts to obstruct an EFCC probe into a company called Singularity. He alleged that two separate amounts, $500,000 and $100,000, were reserved for those payments. The allegations are part of the prosecution's case and have not been proven in court. Kayode said the conversations referred to a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, another person and Bashir El-Rufai. He alleged that the senior lawyer and the other person were instructed to see Ahmadu Sule to get a template that had been used before to wind up another company, with a plan to use a similar method for Singularity. The witness said the talks included proposals to liquidate Singularity in Nigeria and Mauritius. He also mentioned an investigation by the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit and alleged discussions about stopping an EFCC inquiry into a company he said was listed on the New York Stock Exchange. The hearing lasted almost eight hours, from 12:26 p.m. to 8:18 p.m., with about two hours used to play the recordings. Earlier, El-Rufai's lead counsel, Paul Erokoro, SAN, objected to Kayode testifying because his name and a summary of his evidence were not in the prosecution's proof of evidence. Erokoro said the omission affected his client's right to a fair hearing, arguing that the defence needed prior notice of the evidence it would have to answer. Counsel for the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, Ayodeji Adedipe, SAN, replied that Kayode had been subpoenaed and that the omission did not by itself make his evidence inadmissible. Adedipe said the court issued and signed the subpoena on June 30, 2026, and that the defence would have a chance to cross-examine the witness. Erokoro insisted that the issue was adequate preparation, not the witness's right to testify. Citing Section 210 of the applicable Administration of Criminal Justice Law, 2017, he argued that the subpoena should have been served on the defence. Justice Khobo accepted that Kayode's name and evidence summary were not in the proof of evidence but ruled that court records showed he had been subpoenaed. The judge held that the omission did not automatically make the testimony inadmissible, as long as the defence could cross-examine him. After Kayode handed in a hard copy of his findings, the defence also objected that the document should have been provided earlier for review. The court admitted it as Exhibit One and ruled that the defence could get a certified true copy. With both sides in agreement, the case was adjourned to November 30 and December 1, 2026, for further cross-examination. El-Rufai arrived at the court at about 11:50 a.m. under heavy security, accompanied by Isah Ashiru, the African Democratic Congress governorship candidate in Kaduna State. His appearance followed an order directing the ICPC to produce him for the resumed hearing. The proceedings occurred days after the Court of Appeal in Kaduna dismissed his challenge to the high court's refusal of bail. In its October 9 judgment, the appellate court held that El-Rufai had not shown sufficient grounds to overturn the decision. The former governor has been in ICPC custody since February 18, 2026, over allegations of financial misconduct relating to his administration of Kaduna State between 2015 and 2023.