A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has granted bail to former Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, his wife, Asabe Bashir, and their son, Abdulaziz Malami, in the sum of ₦200 million each over an alleged multi-billion naira money laundering case.
The ruling was delivered on Friday by Justice Joyce Abdulmalik after the trio was re-arraigned on a 16-count charge filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
In granting bail, Justice Abdulmalik ordered that each defendant must provide two sureties in like sum. She also ruled that one of the sureties must deposit the title deed of a property located in either Maitama or Asokoro, two high-value districts in Abuja.
The court further directed the defendants to surrender their international passports and remain in the custody of the Nigerian Correctional Service until all bail conditions are fulfilled.
According to the EFCC, the former justice minister and his family allegedly conspired to launder more than ₦8.1 billion believed to be proceeds of unlawful activities over a 10-year period between 2015 and 2025.
Prosecutors told the court that the funds were allegedly routed through companies linked to the Malami family, including Metropolitan Auto Tech Limited and Meethaq Hotels Limited, in an attempt to disguise the true source and ownership of the money.
The anti-graft agency further claimed that part of the funds—estimated at about ₦600 million—was retained as cash collateral to secure banking facilities, while other portions were allegedly used to acquire luxury properties in Abuja, Kano, and Kebbi states.
The EFCC argued that the transactions were deliberately structured to conceal the origin of the funds and avoid regulatory scrutiny.
With bail now granted, the case is expected to proceed into what legal observers describe as a potentially high-profile trial involving one of Nigeria’s former top law officers and members of his family.
