A Federal High Court in Abuja admits nine EFCC exhibits in the N8.7bn money laundering trial involving ex-AGF Abubakar Malami, his wife, and son
Malami Trial Heats Up as Court Admits Key EFCC Evidence in N8.7bn Case
Proceedings in the trial of former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, gathered fresh momentum on Monday as a Federal High Court sitting in Maitama, Abuja, admitted nine documentary exhibits tendered by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
The presiding judge, Joyce Abdulmalik, admitted the documents—marked Exhibits D1 to D9—despite objections from defence counsel, clearing the path for a deeper judicial examination of financial records linked not only to Malami but also to his wife, Hajia Bashir Asabe, and his son, Abubakar Abdulaziz Malami.
The EFCC is prosecuting the defendants on an amended 16-count charge bordering on conspiracy, concealment, and laundering of alleged illicit funds totaling over N8.7 billion, in violation of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022. The development marks a critical phase in the high-profile trial, with financial documentation now formally before the court.
The exhibits were introduced through a compliance officer with Zenith Bank, Mashelia Arhyel Bata, who informed the court that the documents were supplied in response to official EFCC requests. According to him, the bank provided comprehensive records—both hard copies and electronic data—covering accounts associated with the defendants and several companies, including Rayhaan Hotels Limited, Rayhaan Bustan Agro Allied Limited, Nashab Limited, Golden Age Global Ventures, and Rahamaniyya Properties Limited.
Under examination by prosecution counsel J. S. Okutepa, SAN, the witness detailed the breadth of the financial records, explaining that they spanned transactions from 2012 to 2023 and captured movements across both naira and dollar-denominated accounts. He revealed that one account alone recorded hundreds of millions of naira in inflows and outflows, with significant transactions such as N194.7 million received in November 2020 from New Horizons Limited and N622.5 million in June 2022 from Rayhaan Bustan Agro Allied Limited. Additional inflows of N250 million each were traced to Rayhaan Hotels Limited in July 2022, alongside a N500 million credit recorded in December of the same year.
Bata further confirmed that the accounts remained consistently active over several years, with transaction trails running into billions of naira, underscoring the scale of financial activity now under scrutiny.
Following the testimony, defence counsel J. B. Daudu, SAN, requested time to review the newly admitted exhibits in preparation for cross-examination, a request the court granted.
Justice Abdulmalik subsequently adjourned the matter to May 13, 2026, for continuation of trial, setting the stage for what is expected to be an intense legal contest as both sides prepare to interrogate the financial evidence now central to the case.
