A Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the final forfeiture of 48 properties, including a university, allegedly linked to former Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, to the Federal Government.
Justice Joyce Abdulmalik delivered the judgment on Wednesday, ruling that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had established that the assets were reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities.
The court held that Malami failed to provide sufficient evidence to prove that the properties were acquired through legitimate sources of income.
Justice Abdulmalik also dismissed several applications and motions filed by Malami, members of his family and companies associated with the disputed assets, describing them as lacking merit.
According to the judge, the key issue before the court was not ownership of the properties but whether the funds used to acquire them were lawfully obtained.
She ruled that the respondents failed to rebut the EFCC’s claim that the assets were proceeds of unlawful activities and consequently granted the anti-graft agency’s application for final forfeiture under Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act.
However, the court declined the EFCC’s request to permanently forfeit nine other properties located in Kebbi and Kaduna states, setting aside the interim forfeiture order on those assets after finding that the commission failed to establish a sufficient link between them and any alleged unlawful activity.
The EFCC had sought the permanent forfeiture of 57 properties valued at approximately ₦212.8 billion, alleging that they were acquired with proceeds of unlawful activities.
Justice Emeka Nwite had earlier, on January 16, granted an interim forfeiture order following an ex parte application filed by the EFCC through its counsel, Ekele Iheanacho (SAN).
Following the publication of the interim order, Malami, his wife, Nana Hadiza, his son, Abdulaziz, and several companies linked to the properties challenged the application, urging the court to vacate the order.
They argued that the properties were lawfully acquired and maintained that the EFCC failed to establish any connection between the assets and alleged criminal activities.
With Wednesday’s ruling, the Federal Government secured the final forfeiture of 48 of the disputed properties, while the remaining nine properties were excluded from the forfeiture order after the court found insufficient evidence to support the EFCC’s claims against them.
