The Federal High Court in Abuja has granted bail to former Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Abubakar Malami, SAN; his wife, Hajia Bashir Asabe; and his son, Abubakar Abdulaziz, in the sum of N500 million each, with two sureties per defendant.
Justice Emeka Nwite, in his ruling on Wednesday, held that the grounds presented by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to oppose the bail applications were speculative and insufficient to warrant their continued detention.
The judge ordered that each surety must own landed property in Asokoro, Maitama, or Gwarimpa within the Federal Capital Territory, with the property documents to be verified by the court’s Deputy Registrar (Litigation).
Justice Nwite further directed the defendants to deposit their international passports with the court and barred them from travelling خارج the country without prior court approval. He also ordered the defendants and their sureties to submit two passport photographs each, while the residential addresses of the sureties must be verified by the court registrar.
Pending the perfection of their bail conditions, the court ordered the defendants to remain at the Kuje and Suleja Correctional Centres. The matter was adjourned until January 17 for the commencement of trial.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the EFCC, in charge number FHC/ABJ/CR/700/2025, listed Malami, his wife, his son, and an employee of Rahamaniyya Properties Ltd as the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd defendants.
In the 16-count charge, the anti-graft agency accused the defendants of engaging in multiple suspicious financial transactions and attempting to conceal the unlawful origin of billions of naira through bank accounts and property acquisitions in Abuja, Kano, and Kebbi states.
The EFCC alleged that the offences were committed between 2015 and 2025, covering the period Malami served as AGF under the administration of late former President Muhammadu Buhari.
According to the commission, Malami, his son, and Asabe allegedly conspired to disguise the origin of illicit funds, acquire properties indirectly, and retain proceeds of unlawful activities, contrary to the Money Laundering (Prohibition and Prevention) Acts of 2011 (as amended) and 2022.
Among the allegations, the EFCC claimed that between July 2022 and June 2025, Malami and his son concealed over N1.01 billion through a Sterling Bank account operated by Metropolitan Auto Tech Limited. Other counts detail alleged concealment of hundreds of millions of naira through companies, bank accounts, cash collateral for loans, and the purchase of luxury properties in Maitama, Asokoro, Garki, Jabi, and Gwarimpa in Abuja, as well as in Kano and Kebbi states.
The commission also alleged that the defendants used proceeds of unlawful activity to acquire multiple high-value properties between 2015 and 2025.
The EFCC said it intends to call several witnesses, including its officials, bank representatives, Bureau de Change operators, and other financial experts. Key witnesses listed include Folarin Dare, Chinedu Eneanya, Sani Lukeman, Abdulrahman Musa Basheer, Jamilu Mohammed, and representatives of Zenith Bank Plc and Sterling Bank Plc.
According to the commission, some of the witnesses will testify on how intelligence reports and petitions alleging large-scale corruption against the former AGF were received and investigated. (NAN)
