The American International School, Abuja (AISA), has defended its decision to withhold $84,942 from school fees paid for the children of former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, stating that the funds covered tuition already rendered.
The school’s auditor and third prosecution witness, Nicholas Ojehomon told the Federal High Court in Abuja that the retained amount was not part of the funds suspected to be from unlawful activities, but rather a reflection of educational services delivered during the academic term.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had traced $845,852.84 to AISA as payments for Bello’s children and requested a full refund.
However, the school returned $760,910.84, insisting that the balance had already been used for legitimate tuition.
“The refunded amount covered advance fees, while the school retained the portion already earned based on our billing policy,” Ojehomon explained during cross-examination by Bello’s lawyer, J.B. Daudu, SAN.
He emphasized that the decision to retain the funds was made independently by the school without any EFCC directive.
The payments, he added, were clearly designated for the benefit of Bello’s children—Zara, Fatima, Na’ima, and Farid.
Court proceedings grew tense as defence lawyers pushed back on the school’s billing decisions, prompting the prosecution to object.
Prosecution counsel Olukayode Eniola, SAN, warned against drawing the witness into speculative answers, while lead prosecutor Kemi Pinheiro, SAN, accused the defence of stalling.
Justice Emeka Nwite adjourned the case to May 9, 2025, directing all parties to finalize document reviews to avoid further delays.
Yahaya Bello is standing trial on 19 counts of criminal breach of trust and money laundering, amounting to N80.2 billion under the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act.
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