Federal government has filed a 16-count charge against Abubakar Malami, former Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and minister of justice, over alleged money laundering.
Gatekeepers News reports that the arges were filed before Federal High Court in Abuja, with Malami named alongside his son, Abubakar Abdulaziz Malami, and Bashir Asabe, an employee of Rahamaniyya Properties, as co-defendants.
In the charge marked FHC/ABJ/CR/700/2025, the government alleged that Malami and his son were involved in transactions aimed at disguising the source of funds suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities between 2022 and 2025.
The prosecution claimed that the defendants used corporate entities and bank accounts to conceal the origin of the funds.
According to the charge sheet, the defendants were accused of procuring companies to hide large sums of money through property purchases and bank transfers.
One of the counts states “That you ABUBAKAR MALAMI SAN whilst being the Attorney General of the Federation, ABUBAKAR ABDULAZIZ MALAMI, and HAJIA BASHIR ASABE an employee of Rahamaniyya Properties Ltd sometime in November, 2022 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court did indirectly disguise the unlawful origin of the aggregate sum of N500, 000, 000.00 (Five Hundred Million Naira) paid to Efab Properties Ltd paid for purchase of property known as luxury duplex at Amazon street, Plot No. 3011 within Cadastral Zone A06 Maitama District, Abuja in favour of ABUBAKAR MALAMI SAN when you reasonably ought to have known that the said N500, 000, 000.00 (Five Hundred Million Naira) formed proceed of unlawful activity and you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 18(2) (a) and punishable under section 18(3) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.”
Another count alleged conspiracy to disguise funds moved through a hotel company account, stating “That you ABUBAKAR MALAMI SAN, ABUBAKAR ABDULAZIZ MALAMI, and HAJIA BASHIR ASABE an employee of Rahamaniyya Properties Ltd sometimes in September 2024 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court conspired to disguise the unlawful origin of the aggregate sum of N1, 049, 173, 926. 13 (One Billion, Forty-Nine Million, One Hundred and Seventy-Three Thousand, Nine Hundred and Twenty-six Naira, Thirteen Kobo) paid through the Union Bank Plc account of Meethaq Hotels Ltd Jabi savings Account No. 0179011105 between November 2022 and September 2024 and you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 21 of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition Act) 2022 and punishable under section 18(2) (a) and (3) of the same Act.”
The government also accused Malami and his son of taking control of funds allegedly linked to unlawful activity, as well as concealing money used to acquire properties in Abuja between 2018 and 2020, in violation of both the 2011 and 2022 Money Laundering Acts.
In addition, the prosecution identified several properties valued at billions of naira, which it claimed are connected to the former Attorney-General. The case is expected to come up for further proceedings at the Federal High Court.
