December 30, 2025 | SUNTV Global Channel | News
Former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), has been remanded at the Kuje Correctional Centre, Abuja, where he is expected to be held in the VIP Segregation Unit, a special section reportedly refurbished by suspended Deputy Commissioner of Police, Abba Kyari.
Sources within the correctional facility disclosed to SUNTV Global Channel that Malami would be accommodated in the high-profile unit reserved for influential detainees. Abba Kyari, a former head of the Intelligence Response Team (IRT), is currently facing multiple charges, including drug trafficking, conspiracy, and obstruction of justice, and has been linked in the past to convicted international fraudster Ramon Olorunwa Abbas (Hushpuppi).
Malami’s remand followed his arraignment by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Tuesday before Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court, Maitama, Abuja. He was arraigned alongside his fourth wife, Hajia Bashir Asabe, and his son, Abubakar Abdulaziz Malami, on a 16-count charge bordering on conspiracy, concealment, and laundering of proceeds of unlawful activities totaling ₦8,713,923,759.49.
According to the EFCC, the alleged offences violate provisions of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
At the commencement of proceedings, prosecuting counsel Ekele Iheanacho, SAN, informed the court that the defendants were arraigned to take their pleas. Defence counsel J.B. Daudu, SAN, raised no objection, and all three defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The anti-graft agency alleged that Malami and his son used corporate entities and multiple bank accounts to disguise and conceal funds suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities. One of the charges stated that between July 2022 and June 2025, over ₦1.01 billion was allegedly concealed through Metropolitan Auto Tech Limited via a Sterling Bank account.
The EFCC further accused Malami of conspiring with his wife to disguise the source of ₦1.04 billion allegedly paid through the Union Bank account of Meethaq Hotels Limited, Jabi, between November 2022 and September 2024. Additional counts alleged that Malami and his son indirectly controlled ₦1.36 billion paid through another Union Bank account linked to the same company between November 2022 and October 2025, knowing or reasonably suspecting the funds were illicit.
Following the plea, the prosecution indicated readiness to proceed to trial but noted that the defence had filed a bail application only a day earlier. The defence sought oral bail, arguing that the offences were bailable. However, the prosecution opposed the request, insisting that bail applications must be properly supported with affidavit evidence.
In his ruling, Justice Nwite held that the prosecution deserved adequate time to respond and consequently ordered that Malami, his wife, and son be remanded at the Kuje Correctional Centre. The court adjourned the matter to January 2, 2026, for the hearing of the bail application.
SUNTV Global Channel will continue to monitor developments in this high-profile case.
