Court Grants Bail to Malami, Wife, Son in N8.7 billion Money Laundering Trial

Meeting the bail conditions will end Mr Malami’s month-long consecutive detentions in the custodies of the EFCC and the correctional centre.

The Federal High Court in Abuja has granted bail to former Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, his wife, Asabe Bashir, and son, Abdulaziz Malami.

Judge Emeka Nwite on Wednesday granted each of them bail in the sum of N500 million in the alleged N8.7 billion money laundering case filed against them by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Meeting the bail conditions will end Mr Malami’s detention that has already lasted 31 days in the custodies of the EFCC and the Correctional Centre in Kuje, Abuja.

The EFCC detained him from 8 December 2025 to 30 December 2025, when the court transferred him to the Correctional Centre in Kuje, Abuja, following his arraignment.

For his wife and son, they have spent 16 days in custody as of Wednesday, having been first detained by the EFCC between 23 December and 30 December, when they were arraigned and subsequently remanded alongside Mr Malami in prison.

Mr Malami, the AGF during former President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration between 2015 and 2023, is standing trial alongside one of his wives, Ms Bashir, and their son, Abdulaziz, on 16 counts of money laundering involving about N8.7 billion.

In the charges, EFCC accused them of retention of proceeds of unlawful activity and illegitimate acquisition of assets with funds with suspicious origins.

They denied all the 16 counts.

Defence lawyer Joseph Daudu, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), had attempted to move an oral application for the defendants’ bail shortly after they were arraigned on 30 December.

But the prosecution represented by Ekele Iheanacho, also SAN, opposed the request and asked for time to formally respond.

In a ruling, the judge held that granting the oral application would deny the prosecution its right to fair hearing since the application had been served with the written request.

He then ordered that the defendants be remanded at the Kuje Correctional Centre.

The bail hearing was eventually heard on 2 January. At the hearing, defence lawyers argued that the offences were bailable and urged the court to grant bail on liberal terms.

The EFCC opposed the application, citing the gravity of the allegations and the risk of interference with witnesses.

The judge adjourned ruling on the bail application until 7 January (today) prompting Kuje prison officials to take Mr Malami, his wife and son back to prison.

More details later…….

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