Yahaya Bello granted Hajj travel

The Nigeria — Federal High Court of Nigeria in Abuja granted Yahaya Bello, a former governor of Nigeria — Kogi State, permission to travel to Saudi Arabia for the 2026 lesser Hajj. The court ordered the temporary release of his international passport for a 10-day period starting March 13, 2026. Yahaya Bello is currently standing trial on charges of alleged money laundering and misappropriation of N80.2 billion, a case instituted by the Nigeria — Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. His lead counsel, Joseph Daudu, argued that Yahaya Bello sought to perform the religious exercise and pray for divine intervention in his trial. The Nigeria — Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, represented by Kemi Pinheiro, did not oppose the travel request but emphasized that all scheduled trial dates would remain unchanged. The court adjourned the trial for the continuation of the examination of the seventh prosecution witness, who had earlier testified about cash inflows from Nigeria — Kogi State local government areas into accounts linked to Fazab Business Enterprise and E-Traders International Ltd.