Court Orders Interim Forfeiture Of 57 Properties Linked To Former AGF Malami
Court Orders Interim Forfeiture Of 57 Properties Linked To Former AGF Malami
Justice Emeka Nwite granted the order to the Federal Government following an ex-parte motion filed by EFCC counsel, Ekele Iheanacho, SAN, citing suspicions that the assets are proceeds of unlawful activity, according to the News Agency of Nigeria.
The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the interim forfeiture of 57 properties linked to former Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, SAN.
Justice Emeka Nwite granted the order to the Federal Government following an ex-parte motion filed by EFCC counsel, Ekele Iheanacho, SAN, citing suspicions that the assets are proceeds of unlawful activity, according to the News Agency of Nigeria.
The multi-billion-naira real estate holdings are spread across Abuja, Kebbi, Kano, and Kaduna states.
While the court issued the order on Tuesday, the Certified True Copy (CTC) only became available on Wednesday.
The order, which temporarily vests control of the multi-billion-naira assets in the Federal Government, followed an ex-parte application by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and was granted by Justice Nwite.
In granting the application, Justice Nwite held that the properties were reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities and ordered their interim forfeiture.
“It is hereby ordered that an interim order of this honourable court is hereby made forfeiting to the Federal Government of Nigeria the properties described in Schedule 1 below which are reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities,” the judge said.
Beyond the temporary seizure, the court directed that the forfeiture order be published in a national daily, effectively inviting third parties to come forward and contest the action.
Justice Nwite ordered the publication of the interim forfeiture “inviting any person(s) or body(ies) who may have interest in the properties listed in the schedule to show cause, within 14 days of the publication, why a final order of forfeiture to the Federal Government of Nigeria of the said assets and properties, should not be made.”
The case has been adjourned to later in January, pending the submission of a compliance report.
The properties listed span Abuja, Kebbi, Kano and Kaduna states and include luxury hotels, duplexes, plazas, warehouses, shopping units and residential estates acquired over several years.
Among them are a luxury duplex on Amazon Street in Maitama purchased in December 2022 for N500 million and later valued at N5.95 billion after enhancement; a two-winged storey building on Onitsha Crescent, Area 11, Garki, formerly Harmonia Hotels Limited, acquired in December 2018 for N7 billion; and a five-storey hotel building in Jabi, now operating as Meethaq Hotels Ltd with 53 rooms, valued at N8.4 billion after completion.
Other assets include Meethaq Hotels Ltd in Maitama with 15 rooms; terraces in Asokoro; multiple residential properties in Gwarimpa, Apo Legislative Quarters and Wuse II; warehouses in Wuse Market; shopping units in Vegas Mall and Shariff Plaza; as well as properties in Kano, Kaduna and Birnin Kebbi, including plazas, bungalows, land and housing units.
The forfeiture proceedings are unfolding alongside an ongoing criminal trial involving Mr Malami, his wife, Bashir Asabe, and his son, Abubakar Abdulaziz.
They are facing an alleged N8.7 billion money laundering charge before Justice Nwite in a case filed by the EFCC and marked FHC/ABJ/CR/700/2025.
In the 16-count charge, the anti-graft agency accused the defendants of engaging in suspicious financial transactions and using bank accounts and extensive property acquisitions across Abuja, Kano and Kebbi to conceal the origin of funds allegedly derived from unlawful activities.
The EFCC alleged that the offences were committed between 2015 and 2025, a period covering Mr Malami’s eight-year tenure as Attorney-General of the Federation under the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari.
According to the commission, Mr Malami, his wife and son allegedly conspired to acquire properties indirectly, retain illicit funds and disguise their origin, contrary to the Money Laundering (Prohibition and Prevention) Acts of 2011 (as amended) and 2022.
In one of the counts, the EFCC alleged that between July 2022 and June 2025, Mr Malami and his son directed Metropolitan Auto Tech Limited to conceal over N1 billion in a Sterling Bank account, knowing the funds were proceeds of unlawful activity.
The court’s interim forfeiture order means the listed assets will remain under government control unless successfully challenged before a final determination is made.
While the court ordered his properties forfeiture, Malami has continually denied any wrongdoing. He was granted a N500 million bail bond earlier on Wednesday.
