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By Correspondent in Abuja.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has urged the Federal High Court in Abuja to grant a final forfeiture order on 57 properties allegedly linked to former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, describing the assets as proceeds of unlawful activities.
At the resumed proceedings before Justice Joyce Abdulmalik,on Thursday ,the anti-graft agency argued that the respondents failed to provide sufficient evidence to overturn an earlier interim forfeiture order granted by the court.
The application, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/20/2026, lists Malami alongside several individuals and companies as respondents in the suit.
The EFCC, through its legal team led by Jibrin Okutepa and Ekele Iheanacho, is seeking a final order transferring ownership of the properties to the Federal Government.
Relying on Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud-Related Offences Act, 2006, the commission maintained that the proceedings are non-conviction-based and that the assets are reasonably suspected to have been acquired through illicit means.
Okutepa told the court that the interim forfeiture order had been duly published in a national newspaper on January 9, 2026, in compliance with legal requirements, adding that no convincing cause had been shown by the respondents to prevent the final forfeiture.
In an affidavit supporting the motion, EFCC investigator Daniel Adebayo detailed the outcome of extensive investigations triggered by multiple petitions alleging corruption, abuse of office and fraud against the former minister.
According to Adebayo, the probe involved collaboration with key institutions, including the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB), and other agencies, as well as property verification across several states.
He disclosed that Malami’s total earnings as minister between 2015 and 2023,including salaries, allowances, and estacodes,were significantly disproportionate to the value of the properties under investigation.
The EFCC further alleged that many of the assets were acquired through proxies and front companies, with some lacking necessary building approvals, particularly in Kano and Kebbi States, in what it described as an attempt to conceal the origin of the funds.
The properties, said to be worth billions of naira, are spread across Abuja, Kebbi, Kano, and Kaduna States, and include both temporary and permanent sites of Rayhaan University in Kebbi.
Our correspondent reports that the case has undergone several judicial reassignments.
Initially, Justice Emeka Nwite granted the interim forfeiture order on January 6, 2026, directing the EFCC to publish the order for interested parties to show cause.
The matter was later reassigned to Justice Obiora Egwuatu, who recused himself, paving the way for its current handling by Abdulmalik.
Meanwhile, Malami and other respondents have challenged the EFCC’s action, urging the court to set aside the interim order.
Justice Abdulmalik has fixed April 21 for the hearing of the motion for final forfeiture.
Edited by Dada Ahmed.
