The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the Federal Government to permanently take over 48 properties linked to former Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami.
Justice Joyce Abdulmalik gave the judgment in Abuja on Wednesday after ruling that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) provided enough reasonable suspicion under the law to support the forfeiture.
The judge said Malami, his family members and companies connected to the properties could not clear the EFCC’s claims that the assets were bought with money from unlawful activities.
Before giving the final judgment, Justice Abdulmalik dismissed different applications, motions on notice and applications to show cause filed by the respondents, describing them as “wanting in merit.”
She explained that the case was not about who owned the properties but whether the money used to buy them was legally obtained.
“The issue before the court is not who owns the property, but how legitimate are the funds used to acquire the property,” the judge said.
She added that the respondents had “not dislodged the reasonable suspicion that the property was acquired by unlawful activities.”
Based on Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, Justice Abdulmalik approved the EFCC’s request for the final forfeiture of the properties.
However, the court cancelled the interim forfeiture order on some of the properties.
In January, the EFCC began civil forfeiture proceedings, asking the court to permanently seize 57 properties worth N212.8 billion. The commission claimed the assets were proceeds of unlawful activities linked to the former AGF.
On January 16, vacation judge Justice Emeka Nwite granted an interim forfeiture order and directed the EFCC to publish it in a national newspaper so that anyone with interest in the properties could appear in court and explain why they should not be permanently handed over to the Federal Government.
The properties are located in Abuja, Kano, Kebbi and Kaduna states.
After the publication, Malami, his wife, Nana Hadiza Malami, his son, Abdulaziz Abubakar Malami, and several companies linked to the properties challenged the interim forfeiture order.
They insisted the properties were legally acquired and argued that the EFCC failed to prove any connection between the assets and the alleged unlawful activities.
They also said the commission relied on speculation instead of solid evidence and did not prove the properties came from any crime or identify any specific offence linked to them.
After the court’s annual vacation, the case was reassigned to Justice Abdulmalik.
During the hearing, EFCC lawyer told the court that investigations showed the properties were bought with proceeds of unlawful activities and kept in the names of people and companies allegedly acting for Malami.
The commission also argued that civil forfeiture law only required it to establish reasonable suspicion, not prove the case beyond reasonable doubt.
After both sides adopted their final written addresses in May, the court reserved judgment. The judgment, first scheduled for July 6, was postponed twice before Justice Abdulmalik delivered the final ruling on Wednesday.
