EFCC secures final forfeiture of 48 Malami-linked assets.

The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the final forfeiture of 48 properties, including a university, linked to former Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, to the Federal Government.

Justice Joyce Abdulmalik ruled on Wednesday that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) successfully established that the assets were reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities.
The court held that Malami failed to prove that the properties were acquired through legitimate means. Justice Abdulmalik also dismissed several applications and objections filed by Malami, his family members and companies linked to the assets, describing them as lacking merit. According to the judge, the central issue was not ownership of the properties but whether the funds used to acquire them were lawfully obtained.
The judge ruled that the respondents failed to dispel the reasonable suspicion surrounding the assets and relied on Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act to grant the final forfeiture order. However, she set aside the interim forfeiture order on nine properties located in Kebbi and Kaduna states, ruling that the EFCC failed to prove they were acquired through unlawful activities.
The EFCC had sought the permanent forfeiture of 57 properties valued at about N212.8 billion after Justice Emeka Nwite granted an interim forfeiture order on January 16. Following the publication of the order, Malami, his wife Nana Hadiza, his son Abdulaziz and several companies challenged the action, insisting the properties were lawfully acquired and unconnected to any criminal activity. However, the court upheld the forfeiture of 48 properties while excluding nine from the order. (NAN)