A forensic investigator with the Department of State Services (DSS) told a Kaduna court on Tuesday that former Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai and some associates allegedly set aside $600,000 to pay off officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and an intermediary.
Segun Kayode, a digital forensics examiner, was the first prosecution witness in the corruption trial before Justice Darius Khobo of the Kaduna State High Court in Kawo.
He said $500,000 was meant for EFCC officials and $100,000 for a middleman, to help bring an EFCC investigation to an end.
Kayode said the allegation comes from audio recordings and call records that his team analysed at the request of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commissio (ICPC), which is prosecuting the case.
He told the court that voice analysis matched the speakers to El-Rufai and his elder brother, Bashir El-Rufai, with conversations dated between 25 and 28 October 2025.
According to the witness, the recordings centred on efforts to stop an EFCC investigation into a company called Singularity, including plans to liquidate it in Nigeria and Mauritius.
He also said they touched on preventing a probe of IHS, a company listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
He named senior advocate AU Mustapha, Jimi Lawal and Bashir El-Rufai as people mentioned in the conversations. The court has not established any wrongdoing by anyone named.
El-Rufai’s lead counsel, Paul Erokoro (SAN), objected to the testimony.
He argued that Kayode’s name and a summary of his evidence were missing from the prosecution’s proof of evidence, and he later complained that the forensic report was not served in advance.
The judge noted the omission but pointed to court records showing the witness had been subpoenaed, and overruled the objection. The hearing lasted almost eight hours, with about two spent playing the recordings.
The hearing came days after the Court of Appeal in Kaduna upheld the denial of bail to El-Rufai, who has been in ICPC custody since 18 February 2026.
He has consistently denied all allegations and describes the prosecution as politically motivated. The defence is expected to cross-examine Kayode at a later sitting.
Administrator and Writer
