Malami accuses EFCC of seizing his properties without a court order

Former Attorney-General Abubakar Malami has accused the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission of forcibly taking over his residences and offices without a valid court order, calling the action a violation of due process.

In a statement issued on Monday, Malami alleged that EFCC operatives accompanied by armed security personnel detained two people and seized properties linked to him. When challenged, he said, the operatives could not produce any court order authorising their presence.

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Malami said the interim forfeiture order the EFCC relied upon had expired. The order, granted on 6th January 2026 by Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court in Abuja, was valid for only 14 days. “That order has since lapsed and cannot, under any stretch of the law, justify the EFCC’s actions today,” his statement read.

Background
In January, the same court ordered the interim forfeiture of 57 properties suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities linked to Malami and two of his sons. Malami challenged that order in February, and the case remains before the court with no final ruling.

He is also facing two separate criminal charges — one from the EFCC and another from the Department of State Services — and was recently granted bail in the DSS terrorism case.