The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has ordered the remand of former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), alongside his son and one of his wives, at the Kuje Correctional Centre pending the hearing of their bail applications.
The order was made on Tuesday by the trial judge, Justice Emeka Nwite, following arguments from both the prosecution and defence teams.
Justice Nwite directed that Malami, his son, Abubakar Malami, and his wife, Bashir Asabe, be taken into custody after their arraignment on a 16-count charge bordering on money laundering.
The defendants are being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, which accused them of conspiring to conceal, retain and disguise proceeds of unlawful activities amounting to several billions of naira.
At the court session, defence counsel, Joseph Daudu (SAN), urged the court to grant bail to the defendants, while the prosecution, led by Ekele Iheneacho (SAN), opposed the application and asked the court to remand them pending a formal consideration of the bail request.
In his ruling, Justice Nwite said the defendants would remain in custody until their bail applications are heard and determined.
According to the EFCC, the alleged offences were committed over several years and involved the use of multiple companies and bank accounts to launder funds.
“The defendants allegedly retained huge sums of cash as collateral for loans and acquired high-value properties in Abuja, Kano and other locations,” the commission stated in the charge.
The anti-graft agency further alleged that some of the offences occurred while Malami was serving as Attorney-General of the Federation, in violation of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended), and the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
The case has been adjourned to a date to be fixed for the hearing of the bail applications and continuation of proceedings.
