A forensic investigator with the Department of State Services (DSS), Segun Kayode, has told a Kaduna State High Court that former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai and some of his associates allegedly earmarked $600,000 to pay officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and intermediaries.
Kayode, the first prosecution witness in El-Rufai’s ongoing trial, made the allegation on Tuesday while testifying before Justice Darius Khobo at the Kaduna State High Court sitting in Kawo.
The investigator said forensic audio recordings captured conversations involving El-Rufai and suspected associates about alleged efforts to frustrate an EFCC investigation into a company identified as Singularity.
According to his testimony, the alleged payments were divided into two sums: $500,000 and $100,000. He said the recordings also mentioned a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, another individual and Bashir El-Rufai.
Kayode further alleged that the conversations involved plans to obtain a template previously used to liquidate another company and apply a similar process to Singularity.
He told the court that the senior lawyer and another individual were allegedly directed to meet Ahmadu Sule to obtain the template. The discussions, according to the witness, included proposals to liquidate the company in Nigeria and Mauritius.
The investigator also referred to an investigation by the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit and alleged discussions about preventing an EFCC inquiry into a company he described as listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
The claims form part of the prosecution’s evidence and have not been established by the court. The allegations concerning the individuals mentioned in the recordings should not be treated as proven criminal conduct.
The hearing lasted almost eight hours, from 12:26 p.m. to 8:18 p.m., with approximately two hours devoted to playing the audio recordings.
However, proceedings were marked by a dispute over whether the prosecution had properly disclosed the witness and his evidence to the defence before the hearing.
El-Rufai’s lead counsel, Paul Erokoro, SAN, objected to Kayode testifying, arguing that the investigator’s name and a summary of his proposed evidence were missing from the prosecution’s proof of evidence.
Erokoro said the omission could undermine his client’s right to a fair hearing because the defence had not received advance notice of the evidence it would be expected to challenge.
Counsel for the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Ayodeji Adedipe, SAN, countered that Kayode had been subpoenaed to appear before the court and that the omission did not automatically render his testimony inadmissible.
Adedipe told the court that the subpoena was issued and signed on June 30, 2026. He argued that the defence would have the opportunity to cross-examine the investigator.
Erokoro maintained that his objection was about adequate preparation rather than the witness’s eligibility to testify. Citing Section 210 of the applicable Administration of Criminal Justice Law, 2017, he argued that the subpoena should have been served on the defence.
In his ruling, Justice Khobo acknowledged that Kayode’s name and evidence summary were absent from the proof of evidence. However, he held that the court’s records showed that the witness had been subpoenaed.
The judge ruled that the omission did not automatically make the testimony inadmissible, provided the defence was given the opportunity to cross-examine the witness.
A further dispute arose after Kayode submitted a hard copy of his findings. The defence complained that the document should have been provided earlier to allow its lawyers to examine it.
The court admitted the document as Exhibit One and directed that the defence could obtain a certified true copy for review.
Following agreement between the prosecution and defence, the case was adjourned until November 30 and December 1, 2026, for continuation of cross-examination.
El-Rufai arrived at the court at about 11:50 a.m. under tight security, accompanied by Isah Ashiru, the African Democratic Congress governorship candidate in Kaduna State.
His appearance followed an order directing the ICPC to produce him for the resumed proceedings.
The hearing came days after the Court of Appeal in Kaduna dismissed El-Rufai’s appeal challenging the refusal of bail by the state high court.
In its judgment delivered on October 9, the appellate court upheld the lower court’s decision, ruling that the former governor had not established sufficient grounds to justify overturning the refusal of bail.
El-Rufai has been in ICPC custody since February 18, 2026, over allegations of financial misconduct linked to his administration of Kaduna State between 2015 and 2023.
The latest allegations emerged during the prosecution’s presentation of evidence in the ongoing case. The trial is expected to continue with the defence’s cross-examination of Kayode when proceedings resume at the end of November.
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