A Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday granted bail totaling ₦1.5 billion to former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN, along with his wife, Hajia Bashir Asabe, and son, Abdulaziz Malami, who are standing trial on alleged multi-billion-naira money laundering charges.
Delivering the ruling, Justice Emeka Nwite ordered that each defendant be admitted to bail in the sum of ₦500 million, subject to strict conditions. Each is to present two sureties in the same amount, all of whom must be owners of verifiable landed property in the high-brow Abuja districts of Asokoro, Maitama or Gwarinpa. The properties’ title documents will be verified by the court registry before bail can be perfected.
The judge also directed that all defendants surrender their international passports and other travel documents to the court and be prohibited from travelling outside Nigeria without prior permission. The sureties must submit recent passport photographs and swear affidavits of means confirming their financial capacity.
Until the bail conditions are fulfilled, the defendants will remain in custody at the Kuje Correctional Centre. The court adjourned the case until 17 February 2026 for the commencement of the full trial.
The defendants were arraigned on December 29, 2025, on a 16-count charge filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), which alleges that the trio was involved in laundering approximately ₦8.7 billion through a complex web of companies, bank accounts and real estate transactions.
According to court documents, the EFCC claims Malami and his son used entities such as Metropolitan Auto Tech Limited to conceal the unlawful origin of funds exceeding ₦1.01 billion lodged in a Sterling Bank account over several years.
In another instance, the commission accuses them of funnelling hundreds of millions of naira through accounts tied to Meethaq Hotels Limited and Rahamaniyya Properties Limited, the latter linked to Malami’s wife.
The anti-graft agency also alleges the defendants indirectly acquired multiple high-value properties in Abuja, Kano and Kebbi States with proceeds from the alleged unlawful activities.
Malami, who served as Nigeria’s AGF from November 2015 to May 2023 under former President Muhammadu Buhari, has denied all charges. At the arraignment, he and co-defendants pleaded not guilty to all counts.
The EFCC opposed the bail application, arguing that the defendants—particularly a former holder of one of the country’s most powerful legal offices—could interfere with witnesses or tamper with evidence if released. Justice Nwite, however, ruled that the risk was not sufficiently established and that the defendants were entitled to bail as a matter of fairness and justice.
Legal analysts say the outcome will be closely watched in Nigeria’s ongoing fight against corruption, particularly given Malami’s high profile and the scale of the allegations. Previous high-profile anti-graft cases ended in controversial judicial decisions, underscoring the political and legal complexities in prosecuting senior government officials.
