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 Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) officials and intermediaries.
Segun Kayode, the first prosecution witness in the case, gave the testimony before Justice Darius Khobo at the Kaduna State High Court in Kawo. He said the alleged payments were split into two sums — $500,000 and $100,000 — and that forensic audio recordings captured conversations involving El-Rufai and several suspected associates.
What the audio recordings allegedly contained
Kayode told the court that the recorded conversations centred on alleged efforts to obstruct an EFCC investigation into a company called Singularity. Among those allegedly mentioned in the conversations were a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, one other individual, and Bashir El-Rufai.
He said the Senior Advocate and the unnamed individual were allegedly directed to meet a man named Ahmadu Sule to obtain a template previously used to wind down another company, with plans to apply the same process to Singularity. The investigator added that the discussions allegedly covered plans to liquidate the company both in Nigeria and in Mauritius, where it was reportedly also under investigation by the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit.
The recordings also allegedly included conversations about blocking the EFCC from investigating a company listed on the New York Stock Exchange. The proceedings ran for nearly eight hours, from 12:26 pm to 8:18 pm, with about two hours spent playing the audio.
Legal dispute over witness testimony
El-Rufai's lead counsel, Paul Erokoro (SAN), raised objections at the outset, arguing that Kayode's name and a summary of his evidence were missing from the prosecution's proof of evidence. He said this undermined the defence's right to a fair hearing under Section 210 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law, 2017, and that the defence should have been served with the subpoena.
Ayodeji Adedipe (SAN), counsel for the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), countered that the witness had been subpoenaed by the court on June 30, 2026, and that the omission did not automatically bar him from testifying. He noted that the defence would have the chance to cross-examine the witness.
Justice Khobo ruled that while Kayode's details were absent from the proof of evidence, the court records confirmed the subpoena. The judge held that his evidence could proceed, provided the defence was allowed to cross-examine him. When Kayode submitted a hard copy of his findings, the defence again complained it had not been given time to study the document. The court directed the defence to obtain a certified true copy admitted as Exhibit One.
Case adjourned and custody status
The case was adjourned until November 30 and December 1, 2026, for cross-examination to continue. El-Rufai arrived at the court at about 11:50 am alongside African Democratic Congress governorship candidate in Kaduna State, Isah Ashiru. He has remained in ICPC custody since February 18, 2026, over alleged financial misconduct during his tenure as governor between 2015 and 2023.
Days before Tuesday's hearing, the Court of Appeal in Kaduna dismissed his appeal against the lower court's refusal to grant him bail, ruling on October 9 that he had not established sufficient grounds for the appellate court to intervene.
