The Borno State High Court sitting in Maiduguri has remanded a businessman Muhammad Abdullahi over alleged criminal breach of trust involving ₦186 million.
The Maiduguri Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) arraigned Abdullahi before Justice Maina Lawan on a six-count charge bordering on criminal breach of trust.
According to the EFCC on Tuesday, the defendant allegedly received ₦186 million for safekeeping but diverted the funds for his personal use instead of preserving them for the purpose for which they were entrusted to him.
One of the charges specifically alleged that on February 14, 2024, Abdullahi dishonestly converted ₦30 million transferred into his bank account to his personal use.
The commission said the alleged offence contravened Sections 299 and 300 of the Borno State Penal Code Law and other Matters Connected therewith Law, 2023.
The antigraft agency alleged that the funds were entrusted to Abdullahi through electronic transfers, but he allegedly exercised control over the money in a manner inconsistent with the trust placed in him.
The defendant pleaded not guilty to all six counts after they were read to him, denying the allegations contained in the charges and setting the stage for a full trial.
Following his plea, EFCC counsel, N.T. Iko, urged the court to grant a date for trial and remand Abdullahi in a correctional facility pending the determination of the case.
Justice Lawan subsequently adjourned the matter until September 7, 2026, for further proceedings and ordered that the defendant be remanded at the Maiduguri Maximum Correctional Centre.