THE alleged ₦8.7 billion money laundering and assets forfeiture cases involving former Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), have been reassigned to Justice Obiora Egwuatu of the Federal High Court, Abuja Division.
The cases, instituted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), were previously handled by Justice Emeka Nwite, who sat as a vacation judge during the court’s annual recess.
News Point Nigeria gathered that following the end of the court’s vacation, both matters were returned to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court in line with standard judicial practice and subsequently reassigned to Justice Egwuatu.
Justice Egwuatu has now fixed February 12, 2026, for hearing in the assets forfeiture suit, while the alleged money laundering charge has been scheduled for February 16, 2026, when Malami and the other defendants are expected to be arraigned.
The EFCC is prosecuting Malami alongside his son, Abdulaziz Malami, and a woman identified as Hajia Bashir Asabe, said to be an employee of Rahamaniyya Properties Limited, a company allegedly linked to the former minister.
The anti-graft agency alleges that the defendants conspired to launder funds amounting to ₦8.7 billion, disguised the origin of the money, indirectly acquired properties, and retained proceeds they allegedly knew were derived from unlawful activities.
The charges are said to be in violation of the Money Laundering (Prohibition and Prevention) Acts of 2011 (as amended) and 2022.
Malami, Abdulaziz, and Hajia Asabe were first arraigned on December 30, 2025, before Justice Nwite on a 16-count charge. On January 6, 2026, Justice Nwite also granted an ex parte application filed by the EFCC for the interim forfeiture of 57 properties allegedly acquired unlawfully by the former AGF.
The forfeiture order authorised the temporary seizure of the properties pending the determination of the substantive suit.
However, Malami has since challenged the interim forfeiture order, urging the Federal High Court to set it aside.
In a motion filed through his counsel, Joseph Daudu (SAN), the former AGF asked the court to reverse the January 6 order, describing it as unjustified, misleading, and obtained through suppression of material facts.
Malami specifically sought the release of three properties listed among the 57 assets affected by the forfeiture order.
The properties include Plot 157, Lamido Crescent, Nasarawa GRA, Kano, reportedly purchased on July 31, 2019; a bedroom duplex with boys’ quarters located at House No. 12, Yalinga Street, off Adetokunbo Ademola Crescent, Wuse II, Abuja, allegedly acquired in October 2018 for ₦150 million; and the ADC Kadi Malami Foundation Building, reportedly purchased for ₦56 million and listed as properties numbered 18 and 48 in the EFCC’s schedule.
Malami argued that the properties listed as numbers nine, 18, and 48 were not linked by any prima facie evidence to proceeds of unlawful activity or any specific offence.
He stated that the properties numbered nine and 18 were duly declared in his asset declaration forms submitted to the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) in 2019 and 2023, respectively.
According to him, the property marked as number 48 is held in trust for the estate of his late father, the late Kadi Malami.
“These assets, their value and their root of title have been clearly stated and specifically demonstrated in the various asset declaration forms spanning from 2019 to 2023,” Malami said.
He added that the declarations constitute prima facie evidence of the legitimacy of the acquisition and ownership of the properties.
The former AGF further detailed his declared income sources, which he said include ₦374.63 million earned from salaries, estacodes, severance allowances, and other official earnings, as well as sitting allowances from various boards and committees, including the Federal Judicial Service Commission, FCT Judicial Service Commission, Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee, and presidential committees.
He also cited ₦574.07 million realised from the disposal of assets, ₦10.01 billion turnover from business ventures, ₦2.52 billion in loans extended to businesses, and ₦958 million received as traditional gifts from personal friends.
Malami further disclosed that ₦509.88 million was generated from the launch and public presentation of his book titled “Contemporary Issues on Nigerian Law and Practice, Thorny Terrains in Traversing the Nigerian Justice Sector: My Travails and Triumphs.”
According to him, these income streams sufficiently explain the lawful acquisition of the properties targeted by the EFCC.
He argued that the interim forfeiture order was granted without any prima facie establishment of unlawful purpose and should therefore be set aside.
Malami also accused the EFCC of exaggerating and inflating the value of the assets, alleging that the order was obtained through misrepresentation, incompetent valuation, and deliberate manipulation aimed at misleading the court.
He contended that the forfeiture proceedings amount to an assault on his fundamental right to property, his presumption of innocence, and his right to family life.