Legal Showdown: Judge Steps Out As Lawyers Clash In Yahaya Bello’s Fraud Case

In the fraud case against former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello, senior advocates Abdulwahab Mohammed and Kemi Pinheiro clashed over the inclusion of a colleague, leading to courtroom drama.

Eko Hot Blog reports that the fraud case against former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello took a dramatic turn on Wednesday as two senior advocates clashed during court proceedings. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has filed the case against Bello.

The verbal altercation involved Abdulwahab Mohammed (SAN), representing Bello, and Kemi Pinheiro (SAN), representing the federal government. The dispute began when Mohammed announced his appearance for Bello but excluded his colleague, Adeola Adedipe (SAN).

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The federal government counsel, Pinheiro, objected to Adedipe’s exclusion, arguing that he should remain part of the proceedings until officially discharged by the court. Adedipe then interrupted, stating he was not prepared to participate in the proceedings.

Mohammed interjected, announcing that Adedipe had filed a notice of withdrawal. As Justice Emeka Nwite was about to rule on the matter, Mohammed requested to stay outside the proceedings if the court proceeded with its ruling.

Fuming with anger, Mohammed openly called Pinheiro, a rough lawyer who takes delight in misleading the court.

His attempt to make further abusive remarks about the federal government lawyer was aborted, but Mohammed refused to apologise, insisting that he would leave the court should the judge go ahead with the ruling.

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When tempers rose beyond control, Justice Emeka Nwite, out of anger, abruptly brought the proceedings to an end by walking straight into his chamber.

At the time of this report, tension was still high in the courtroom.

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