Former Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, ABUBAKAR MALAMI, his son ABUBAKAR ABDULAZIZ MALAMI, and an associate, HAJIA BASHIR ASABE, have pleaded NOT GUILTY to a 16-COUNT MONEY LAUNDERING CHARGE.
The trio was arraigned before the FEDERAL HIGH COURT IN ABUJA. The charges, brought by the ECONOMIC AND FINANCIAL CRIMES COMMISSION (EFCC), allege LARGE-SCALE MONEY LAUNDERING AND ILLEGAL ACQUISITION OF PROPERTIES WORTH OVER N8.7 BILLION.
According to the EFCC, the defendants allegedly conspired to CONCEAL, DISGUISE, AND RETAIN PROCEEDS FROM UNLAWFUL ACTIVITIES, using multiple bank accounts, corporate entities, and high-value real estate transactions over nearly a decade to acquire the illicit funds.
The alleged offences reportedly occurred between 2015 AND 2025, primarily in ABUJA, during Malami’s tenure as AGF.
DETAILS OF ALLEGED MISCONDUCT
Malami and his son are accused of using METROPOLITAN AUTO TECH LIMITED to hide N1.014 BILLION in a STERLING BANK ACCOUNT from July 2022 to June 2025 and depositing another N600.01 MILLION between September 2020 and February 2021.
Properties allegedly purchased with illicit funds include:
LUXURY DUPLEX, AMAZON STREET, MAITAMA – N500 MILLION
PROPERTY ON ONITSHA CRESCENT, GARKI – N700 MILLION
PROPERTY IN JABI DISTRICT – N850 MILLION
RHINE STREET, MAITAMA – N430 MILLION
ASOKORO DISTRICT – N210 MILLION AND N325 MILLION
EFAB ESTATE, GWARIMPA – N120 MILLION
Additional properties totaling N952 MILLION were allegedly acquired in ABUJA, KANO, AND BIRNIN KEBBI via proxies and corporate entities to obscure ownership.
Hajia Bashir Asabe, an employee of RAHAMANIYYA PROPERTIES LTD, is said to have facilitated these transactions and helped conceal ownership on Malami’s behalf.
The EFCC stated that the alleged actions VIOLATE THE MONEY LAUNDERING (PROHIBITION) ACT, 2011 (AS AMENDED) and the MONEY LAUNDERING (PREVENTION AND PROHIBITION) ACT, 2022.
The commission has listed INVESTIGATORS, BANK OFFICIALS, BUREAU DE CHANGE OPERATORS, AND COMPANY REPRESENTATIVES as witnesses to support its case.
The trial is ongoing before the FEDERAL HIGH COURT IN ABUJA.
