Exclusive: NFIU Places Tinubu’s Campaign DG Abdulaziz Yari Under Secret Investigation For Laundering $500,200 Through New Bank Account In 7 Days

Secrets Reporters

The Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) has placed Senator Abdul’aziz Abubakar Yari, the newly appointed Director-General of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s 2027 presidential campaign council, under a secret investigation over suspected money laundering involving $500,200 deposited in cash into a newly opened bank account within seven days.

Sources familiar with the probe, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the ongoing inquiry, told SecretsReporters that the NFIU’s analysis of account number 0010116248, domiciled with TAJBank, covering the period from 25 November 2024 to 4 December 2024, revealed four cash deposits totalling $500,200 (Five hundred thousand, two hundred US Dollars). The account was opened by Yari Abubakar Abdulaziz shortly before the deposits began. Large cash deposits into a newly opened account constitute a classic money laundering red flag under Nigerian law, raising suspicions that the subject may be attempting to conceal the true origin of the funds.

According to information available to the NFIU on the subject, the investigation draws on reports submitted pursuant to the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act (MLPPA) 2022 and the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act (TPPA) 2022. The unit suspects the proceeds may be linked to illegal gold mining activities in Zamfara State, activities widely documented as financing banditry, terrorism, and widespread bloodshed in the North-West.

Further analysis of transaction patterns in Currency Transaction Reports (CTRs) linked to the subject’s accounts showed substantial inflows from various entities that could appear business-related. However, investigators noted an absence of evidence that two companies associated with Yari, Kayatawa Nigeria Limited and BT Oil and Gas Nigeria Limited, are fulfilling their tax obligations.

Yari, a former two-term governor of Zamfara State (2011–2019) and currently the senator representing Zamfara West, was formally named Director-General of the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential campaign council for the 2027 elections last week. President Tinubu chairs the 108-member council, with Vice President Kashim Shettima and APC National Chairman Nentawe Yilwatda as vice-chairmen. The appointment underscores Yari’s growing influence within the ruling party and his role in mobilising support, particularly in the North.

This is not the first time Yari has faced scrutiny from anti-corruption agencies. In 2021, a Federal High Court in Abuja ordered the final forfeiture of approximately $669,248 and over ₦24.3 million linked to him and his companies Kayatawa Nigeria Limited and BT Oil and Gas Nigeria Limited, after the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) argued he could not satisfactorily explain the source of the funds. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has also previously interrogated him in connection with alleged diversion of public funds and other matters.

Zamfara State, Yari’s political base, sits at the heart of Nigeria’s illegal gold mining crisis. The state is richly endowed with gold deposits, yet artisanal and illegal mining has become deeply entangled with armed banditry and terrorism. Armed groups control many mining sites, force local residents into labour, impose levies, and use the proceeds to purchase weapons, expand operations, and sustain violence. Officials and researchers have repeatedly linked the illicit gold trade to the funding of banditry that has killed thousands, displaced hundreds of thousands, and devastated communities across the North-West.

Nigeria is estimated to lose more than $9 billion annually to illegal mining and gold smuggling. Gold extracted under these conditions often moves through informal networks and black markets, sometimes reaching international trading hubs. The federal government has imposed mining bans in affected areas at various times, yet enforcement remains challenging amid the security crisis. Ministers and Senate reports have explicitly identified illegal artisanal gold mining in Zamfara, Kaduna, and Katsina as a key driver of insecurity, with proceeds used to procure arms.

The NFIU, established under the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit Act 2018 and operating under the MLPPA 2022 and TPPA 2022, receives and analyses suspicious transaction reports, cash transaction reports, and other financial intelligence from banks and designated non-financial businesses. It disseminates actionable intelligence to law enforcement agencies. Cash deposits of the scale and pattern described in the Yari account analysis align with recognised indicators of potential money laundering and possible terrorism financing risks.

TAJBank, like other Nigerian financial institutions, is required to implement robust anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing controls, including enhanced due diligence on politically exposed persons (PEPs) and the timely filing of suspicious transaction reports. The NFIU guidelines emphasise rapid reporting of unusual activity, particularly large cash movements into new accounts.