Federal High Court Orders Probe into Alleged Evidence Tampering in N10bn Fraud Trial

A Federal High Court in Abuja has directed the Nigeria Police Force and the Department of State Services to investigate the alleged deletion of critical evidence in an ongoing N10 billion fraud case.

Justice James Omotosho issued the order on Thursday after the court’s Registrar, Nasiru Zubairu, confessed that the second defendant, Daudu Sulaiman, had approached him to delete specific WhatsApp messages from a mobile phone admitted as exhibits.

According to a statement by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Justice Omotosho stated that the disclosure aligns with the court’s policy of transparency and its zero-tolerance stance toward actions that could compromise judicial integrity.

“We have zero tolerance for this kind of attitude,” the judge was quoted as saying.

In open court, an audio recording of the registrar’s confession was played. Zubairu admitted that Sulaiman promised to assist him with housing in return for deleting certain WhatsApp messages from the exhibits.

Following this revelation, the prosecution led the EFCC investigating officer, Muhammed Audu Abubakar, to examine the device. Abubakar confirmed that several chats from 2020 to 2022 had been removed, noting specific gaps in the records including conversations dated December 23, 2020, and January 22, 26, and 30, 2021, among others.

The Director of Public Prosecution, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, urged the court to order a full investigation, citing “an urgent irresistible suspicion” that evidence had been tampered with. He also applied for the revocation of the defendant’s bail and a forensic examination of the exhibit.

Defense counsel expressed surprise but asked the court to await forensic findings before taking further action.

In his ruling, Justice Omotosho directed the police and DSS to investigate the alleged evidence tampering and report back to the court. The case was adjourned to February 9, 2026, for continuation.