Court postpones ruling on El-Rufai’s bail applications until July 1

A Federal High Court in Kaduna has postponed its ruling on the bail applications filed by former Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai and his co-defendant, Jimi Lawal, until July 1, 2026.

Justice Hauwa’u Buhari fixed the new date after hearing arguments from both the prosecution and defence in a corruption case brought by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).

El-Rufai, Lawal and five companies are facing an amended 11-count charge involving alleged abuse of office, financial misconduct and money laundering. Both defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges against them.

The defence team told the court that bail applications were already before the court and requested their consideration. After hearing both sides, the judge reserved ruling on the applications until July 1.

El-Rufai arrived at the court under heavy security as proceedings continued in the high-profile case.

Earlier on Wednesday, the former governor also appeared before a Kaduna State High Court in a separate ICPC case involving allegations of abuse of office and money laundering linked to his time in office between 2015 and 2023.

That case was adjourned until June 29, 2026, for further hearing.

The ICPC said its investigation uncovered alleged irregularities in the handling of public funds and the award of government contracts.

However, El-Rufai and the other defendants have denied the allegations and pleaded not guilty.