A Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the permanent forfeiture of assets worth about $154.6 million (N212.8 billion) linked to former Attorney-General and Minister of Justice Abubakar Malami, delivering one of Nigeria’s biggest civil asset recovery victories in recent years.
Justice Joyce Abdulmalik ruled that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had established reasonable grounds to show that the properties were acquired with proceeds suspected to be from unlawful activities rather than legitimate income.
The ruling follows civil forfeiture proceedings filed by the anti-graft agency against 57 properties linked to Malami and companies associated with him.
While the court granted the final forfeiture of 48 properties, it declined to permanently seize nine others after finding that the EFCC had not sufficiently established that they were proceeds of crime.
The assets covered by the forfeiture order include a luxury duplex in Abuja, a university campus, an agro-allied factory and several residential and commercial properties spread across northern Nigeria.
