Justice Maryanne Anineh of the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Maitama, Abuja, on Thursday, July 17, dismissed an application by former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Adoza Bello to retrieve his passport for a medical trip to the United Kingdom.
Bello, facing a 16-count charge of criminal breach of trust and money laundering amounting to N110.4 billion, is being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) alongside Umar Shuaibu Oricha and Abdulsalami Hudu.
Bello, through his counsel J.B. Daudu, SAN, had filed an application on June 20, 2025, requesting temporary release of his passport to attend a scheduled medical appointment abroad, promising to return it upon his return.
However, EFCC counsel Chukwudi Enebeli, SAN, opposed the request, arguing it sought to alter Bello’s bail conditions, which required his passport to remain with the court. Enebeli also noted that Bello’s sureties were not informed of the travel request and highlighted a similar pending application in another court, labeling it an abuse of court process.
At Thursday’s hearing, EFCC counsel Jami'u Agburo confirmed the matter was set for a ruling. Justice Anineh, in her decision, ruled that her court lacked jurisdiction to grant the application since Bello’s passport was held by the Federal High Court, not her court.
She noted that Bello himself had deposed an affidavit confirming the passport’s deposit with the Federal High Court, making any order from her court redundant.
“Courts don’t make orders in vain,” Justice Anineh stated, emphasizing that the passport could not be in two courts simultaneously.
She struck out the application and adjourned the case to October 8, 9, and November 13, 2025, for trial continuation.
