On Tuesday, the Federal High Court in Abuja directed six financial institutions to provide the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) with comprehensive information regarding the bank accounts associated with Omoyele Sowore, a prominent journalist and publisher of Sahara Reporters. The court order mandates that the banks disclose all account details and transaction histories — including both deposits and withdrawals — covering the period from January 2024 to the present.
Justice Emeka Nwite issued the ruling after considering an ex parte application brought forward by the IGP’s legal representative, Wisdom Madaki. The motion, filed under suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/1757/2025, named Sowore and the Sahara Reporters Media Foundation as the first and second respondents, respectively. The six financial institutions — United Bank for Africa (UBA), Guarantee Trust Bank (GTB), Zenith Bank, Opay Digital Services, Moniepoint, and Kuda Microfinance Bank — were listed as the third through eighth respondents.
According to the IGP, Sowore is currently under investigation for serious allegations, including terrorism financing, money laundering, and other fraudulent activities. The police assert that these bank accounts are being used to facilitate such illicit financial operations. In the five grounds submitted in the application, the IGP stressed the necessity of gaining access to these account records in order to effectively carry out the investigation. The application emphasized that denying access to the requested information could hinder or jeopardize ongoing law enforcement efforts.
An affidavit accompanying the motion, sworn by Bassey Ibrahim, a police officer from the Legal Section of the Force Criminal Investigation Department (CID), detailed an intelligence report that allegedly links Sowore to funding terrorism and receiving foreign financial support for these activities. Ibrahim emphasized that obtaining court approval was essential for accessing the bank records to support further investigation.
Justice Nwite ruled in favor of the application, describing it as meritorious and granting the IGP the authority to request all relevant documents from the banks. The ruling paves the way for the police to obtain critical evidence in the case. Reports indicate that at least 26 bank accounts tied to Sowore, including those related to the Sahara Reporters Media Foundation and the African Action Congress (AAC), are under scrutiny in connection to these allegations.