Nigeria anti-graft agency wins forfeiture of 48 properties tied to ex-attorney-general

A Nigerian court has ordered the final forfeiture ​of 48 properties linked to former attorney-general ‌and justice minister Abubakar Malami to the government after finding they were suspected proceeds of ​crime, court documents show.

Judge Joyce Abdulmalik ​of the Federal High Court in the ⁠capital Abuja said the Economic and ​Financial Crimes Commission had shown that the assets ​were reasonably suspected to have been acquired through illicit means and not from lawful income.

Malami, Nigeria’s ​chief law officer from 2015 to 2023, ​is facing 16 counts of money laundering and conspiracy involving ‌billions ⁠of naira (hundreds of millions of dollars), brought by the EFCC. He has previously pleaded not guilty.

An interim order on July ​1 gave interested ​parties ⁠14 days to show why the properties should not be finally ​forfeited to the government. That deadline ​expired ⁠on Tuesday.

Assets listed include a luxury Abuja duplex, a university campus, an agro-allied factory ⁠and ​other properties in the ​north of the country.

Reporting by Tife Owolabi in Yenagoa; Writing ​by Elisha Bala-Gbogbo; Editing by Rod Nickel