RismadarVoice Reporters
January 20, 2026
The first prosecution witness (PW1), Mustapha Usman, on Monday, January 19, 2026, told a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja how a former member of the House of Representatives, Aliyu Ibrahim Gebi, issued him 14 dud cheques valued at N125 million.
The court is presided over by Justice Jude Onwuegbuzie.
Led in evidence by prosecution counsel, Sylvanus Tahir, SAN, the witness disclosed that he met the defendant through Hajiya Aishatu Dahiru Ahmed, who was at the time a serving member of the House of Representatives.
According to Usman, in 2011, Gebi approached Honourable Aishatu for a friendly loan of N125 million, which was granted.
“I was present when the first defendant wrote an undertaking to repay the loan within 60 days without interest. At the expiration of the 60 days, he failed to fulfil his obligation, after which I personally approached him for repayment,” the witness said.
Usman further testified:
“Thereafter, he issued me cheques totalling N125,500,000 (One Hundred and Twenty-Five Million, Five Hundred Thousand Naira). The additional N500,000 arose when, during follow-up, he told me he was expecting funds from the United States and requested N1 million for his flight ticket. To reduce my risk, I gave him N500,000.
“Some of the cheques were issued from Craft Technology Ltd, while others were from the first defendant’s personal account. All the cheques were issued in favour of my company, Musty Petroleum Limited, and they were 14 in number.”
Testifying further, the witness stated that when he presented the cheques at United Bank for Africa (UBA), they were returned unpaid.
“I was informed that withdrawal attention was required. Since the cheques were UBA cheques and I also maintain an account with the bank, I later discovered that both Craft Technology Ltd’s account and the first defendant’s personal account were not funded,” he said.
Usman told the court that despite repeated promises by the defendant, payment was not forthcoming, prompting him to petition the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
“After the petition, he began making payments. He first paid N20 million, then N34 million, and continued paying in bits. About two weeks ago, I received N12 million.
“When we were last in court on December 18, 2025, the defendant claimed he had completed payment, but I informed him that was incorrect. He checked his records and paid the outstanding balance of N10,500,000 the same day after leaving the court,” the witness added.
The letter of undertaking, dated December 19, 2011, was tendered and admitted in evidence as Exhibit PW1a.
The 14 cheques, dated January 12, 2012, issued in favour of Musty Petroleum Limited, were also tendered and admitted as Exhibits PW1b–PW1xiv, while the petition to the EFCC, dated September 13, 2012, was admitted as Exhibit PW1l.
Justice Onwuegbuzie adjourned the matter until January 21, 2026, for continuation of trial.
Gebi was first arraigned on January 29, 2013, before Justice Abba Mohammed of the Federal Capital Territory High Court on a 13-count charge. Following Justice Mohammed’s elevation to the Court of Appeal, the case was reassigned to Justice Onwuegbuzie.
