By Ikechukwu Nnochiri
ABUJA– The immediate past Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami, on Tuesday, pleaded not guilty to a 16-count money laundering charge the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), preferred against him.
Malami was docked alongside his son, Abdulaziz, before trial Justice Emeka Nwite who is sitting as a vacation judge.
Following a plea of innocence by the duo, their lawyer, Mr. J. B. Daudu, SAN, made an oral application for their release on bail, pending the determination of the case against them.
However, the EFCC urged the court to reject the bail application and order accelerated hearing of the matter.
The defendants, who were alleged to have laundered public funds totalling about N9billion, were said to have acted in breach of Section 15(2) (d) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011, as amended and punishable under Section 15(3).
The former Minister was accused of using stolen funds to acquire choice properties in Abuja, Kebbi, Kano and others cities.
According to the anti-graft agency, the defendants had between July 2022 and June 2025, used a firm- Metropolitan Auto Tech Limited- to conceal over N1.01bn in a Sterling Bank account.
They were further accused of using the same company to siphon about N600million between September 2020 and February 2021.
Likewise, EFCC told the court that the defendants had March 2021, retained N600m as cash collateral for a N500m loan that a firm- Rayhaan Hotels Ltd- obtained from Sterling Bank, despite allegedly knowing that the funds were proceeds of crime.
Some of the counts in the charge against them, read: “That you Abubakar Malami SAN, and Abubakar Abdulaziz Malami between July 2022 and June, 2025 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court did procure Metropolitan Auto Tech Limited to conceal the unlawful origin of the total sum of N1, 014, 848, 500.00 (One Billion, Fourteen Million, Eight Hundred and Forty Eight Thousand, Five Hundred Naira) in the Sterling Bank Plc Account No. 0079182387 when you reasonably ought to have known that the said sum formed proceeds of unlawful activities and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 21(c) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022 and punishable under Section 18(3) of the same Act.
“That you Abubakar Malami SAN whilst being the Attorney-General of the Federation, and Abubakar Abdulaziz Malami between September 2020 and February, 2021in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court did procure Metropolitan Auto Tech Limited to conceal the unlawful origin of the total sum of N600,013,460.4 in the Sterling Bank Plc Account No. 0079182387 when you reasonably ought to have known that the said sum formed proceeds of unlawful activitiesand you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 18(c) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2011 as amended by Act No. 1 of 2012) and punishable under section 15(3) of the same Act
“That you Abubakar Malami SAN whilst being the Attorney-General of the Federation and Abubakar Abdulaziz Malami sometime in March, 2021 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court did retain the total sum of N600,000,000.00 in Metropolitan Auto Tech Limited as cash collateral for a loan of N500,000,000.00 granted to RAYHAAN HOTELS LTD by Sterling Bank Plc when you reasonably ought to have known that the said cash collateral of N600,000,000.00 was proceed of unlawful activities and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 18(c) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2011 as amendedpunishable under section 15(3) of the same Act
“That you Abubakar Malami SAN whilst being the Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Abdulaziz Malami, and Hajia Bashir Asabe an employee of Rahamaniyya Properties Limited sometime in November, 2022 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court did indirectly disguise the unlawful origin of the aggregate sum of N500,000,000.00 paid to Efab Properties Ltd paid for purchase of property known as luxury duplex at Amazon street, Plot No. 3011 within Cadastral Zone A06 Maitama District, Abuja in favour of Abubakar Malami SAN when you reasonably ought to have known that the said N500million formed proceed of unlawful activity and you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 18(2) (a) and punishable under section 18(3) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.”
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