Judge Bows Out of Malami’s N213bn Asset Forfeiture Suit

Justice Obiora Egwatu of the Federal High Court has stepped down from presiding over the ₦213.2 billion asset forfeiture case involving former Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami (SAN), and two others.

The Judge announced his decision on Thursday February 12, shortly after lawyers representing the parties entered their appearances in court.

Global Mirror News reports that Justice Egwatu cited personal reasons for his withdrawal, stating that the decision was taken in the interest of justice.

“For personal reasons and in the better interest of justice, I will recuse myself from this case,” he said.

He subsequently ordered that the case file, marked CR/700/2025 — FRN v. Abubakar Malami (SAN) & 2 Ors — be returned to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court for reassignment to another judge.

The recusal comes amid an ongoing legal battle over 57 properties valued at about ₦213.2 billion, which were earlier ordered to be temporarily forfeited to the Federal Government.

Global Mirror News gathered that Justice Emeka Nwite had, on January 6, granted an interim forfeiture order following an ex parte application filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

The anti-graft agency alleged that the properties are reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities linked to Malami and his sons.

The properties listed in the forfeiture application reportedly include university buildings, hotels, shopping plazas, filling stations, residential estates and expansive parcels of land located across Abuja, Kebbi, Kano and Kaduna States.

As part of the interim order, the court directed the EFCC to publish the forfeiture notice in a national daily and invite interested parties to appear within 14 days to show cause why the assets should not be permanently forfeited to the Federal Government.

However, Malami has challenged the forfeiture order, insisting that his wealth was lawfully acquired and duly declared to the appropriate authorities. He described the proceedings as capable of producing conflicting outcomes and amounting to duplicative litigation.

The former AGF also argued that the action infringes on his constitutional rights, including his rights to property, presumption of innocence and family life.

He further urged the court to restrain the EFCC from interfering with his ownership and control of three properties — numbered 9, 18 and 48 — listed in the commission’s application.

According to him, one of the properties is held in trust for the estate of his late father, Kadi Malami.

With Justice Egwatu’s withdrawal, the high-profile case now awaits reassignment by the Chief Judge for continuation of proceedings.