Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court, Abuja, on Thursday withdrew from the N10 billion money laundering trial of Ali Bello, Chief of Staff to Kogi State Governor Usman Ododo.
Justice Omotosho cited the need to protect public confidence in the judiciary, directing that the case file be returned to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court for reassignment to another judge.
The judge’s recusal followed an admission by his court registrar, Nasir Zubairu Onimisi, that he tampered with an exhibit tendered by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The EFCC had filed a 10-count charge, marked FHC/ABJ/CR/550/2022, accusing Bello—a nephew of former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello—and Dauda Sulaiman of misappropriating Kogi State Government funds.
Delivering his ruling, Justice Omotosho stated that Onimisi approached him on February 5, 2026, confessing to tampering with Exhibit N, a mobile phone containing WhatsApp transaction messages linked to the case, in exchange for an inducement.
“He appealed to me to assist him, but I bluntly refused,” Justice Omotosho said, adding that he subsequently played an audio recording of the confession in open court and ordered the arrest of the registrar and the defendants for investigation by the police and the Department of State Services (DSS).
When asked in court on Thursday about the status of the investigation seven months later, EFCC counsel Abbas Muhammed stated that the DSS had submitted its report to the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, though the findings had not been formally presented to the court.
Justice Omotosho explained that preparing a ruling on the defendants’ no-case submission posed a conflict due to the compromised exhibit.
“The overriding consideration, in my view, is that justice must not only be done but must also be seen to be done,” the judge held, adding that his continued handling of the case could raise doubts about his impartiality.
The judge also noted that his recent order forfeiting an Abuja property linked to the case to the Federal Government could further affect public perception if he remained on the trial.
