Abuja Court Schedules July 6 Judgment on Malami Forfeiture

A Federal High Court in Abuja has set July 6 for judgment in a case seeking the final forfeiture of 57 properties linked to former Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami. Justice Joyce Abdulmalik fixed the date on Tuesday after lawyers for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the respondents adopted their final written arguments.

The EFCC is seeking a permanent court order to forfeit the properties to the federal government, alleging they were acquired with proceeds of unlawful activities. The commission's lawyer, Jibrin Okutepa, urged the court to grant the application, arguing that Malami and other respondents had failed to demonstrate the assets were acquired legitimately.

Malami's counsel, Adedayo Adedeji, opposed the request, asking the court to set aside an interim forfeiture order issued in January. He argued that the properties were not proceeds of crime and that the EFCC's case was based on suspicion rather than evidence. The court deals with evidence, not suspicion, Adedeji told the court. He maintained that some properties were acquired before Malami assumed office and were legitimately obtained.

The proceedings involved multiple applications...