A Federal High Court in Abuja has fixed January 7, 2026, for the hearing of the bail applications filed by former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, following his arraignment on money laundering charges.
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Though they had pleaded not guilty to all the charges, but efforts by their lawyers led by Chief Joseph Daudu (SAN), to move an oral argument on the bail applications did not succeed, thereby leading to adjournment of the bail application to January 2, 2026.
At Friday’s proceedings, Daudu, who argued on behalf of the three defendants, urged the court to release his clients on bail to enable them adequately defend themselves against the charge.
Besides, the senior lawyer, who noted that bail is at the discretion of the court, stated that the offence, which the defendants are being prosecuted, is bail-able, adding that the EFCC had earlier granted them administrative bail.
However, EFCC’s lawyer, Emmanuel Iheanacho (SAN), urged the court to decline the application on grounds that the defendants are capable of interfering with witnesses and evidence.
Besides, the prosecution argued that keeping the defendants in custody would keep them safe from Kebbi residents, who may want to attack them over the alleged offences they are being accused of.
But after listening to arguments for and against the bail applications, the court subsequently adjourned till January 7, to decide whether the defendants can be released on bail or not.
Malami, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), is standing trial alongside his son, Abdulaziz Malami, and one of his wives, Asabe Bashir, on a 16-count charge filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). The trio pleaded not guilty when they were arraigned on December 29, 2025.
Following their plea, Justice Emeka Nwite ordered that they be remanded at the Kuje Correctional Centre pending the hearing of their bail applications. Although their legal team was initially scheduled to argue the applications on January 2, the court later adjourned the matter to January 7.
The charges, marked FHC/ABJ/CR/700/2025, allege that the defendants conspired to conceal, disguise, and retain proceeds of unlawful activities between 2015 and 2025, largely within the Federal Capital Territory, during Malami’s tenure as Attorney-General under former President Muhammadu Buhari.
According to the EFCC, Malami and his son allegedly used Metropolitan Auto Tech Limited to launder ₦1.014 billion through a Sterling Bank account between July 2022 and June 2025. The commission further alleged that an additional ₦600.01 million was deposited between September 2020 and February 2021.
The anti-graft agency also listed several properties allegedly acquired with illicit funds, including a ₦500 million duplex on Amazon Street, Maitama; a ₦700 million property on Onitsha Crescent, Garki; and a ₦850 million property in Jabi District. Other properties cited include assets on Rhine Street, Maitama (₦430 million); two properties in Asokoro District valued at ₦210 million and ₦325 million; and a ₦120 million property in Efab Estate, Gwarimpa.
The EFCC further alleged that about ₦952 million in unlawful proceeds was used to acquire additional properties in Abuja, Kano, and Birnin Kebbi between 2018 and 2023, often through proxies and corporate entities to obscure ownership.
The commission said the alleged offences violate provisions of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended) and the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
Malami, his son, and his wife remain in custody at the Kuje Correctional Centre as the court prepares to hear their bail applications on January 7, 2026.
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