Two witnesses for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have given evidence in the ongoing trial of Abubakar Malami, former Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, along with his wife, Bashir Asabe, and their son, Abdulaziz, at the Federal High Court in Abuja.
Malami, his wife, and son are facing a 16-count charge related to alleged money laundering, which they have all pleaded not guilty to.
On Monday, the court resumed hearing with the EFCC calling two witnesses to the stand.
Led by EFCC counsel Jibrin Okutepa, Simon Daniel Kwayil, a compliance officer at Union Bank, testified that in December 2025, the bank received a letter from the anti-corruption agency requesting documents, statements of account, and a certificate of compliance for account number 0179011105, belonging to Meethaq Hotels Limited. These documents were admitted as exhibits in court.
Kwayil said, based on the resolution of the board of Meethaq Hotels Limited, Malami’s wife is the sole signatory to the account. He added that between February 2 and April 3, 2024, about N48 million was electronically transferred from the hotel’s account to accounts linked to Abubakar Malami and A.A. Malami & Co.
He further told the court that the hotel’s account showed millions of naira in inflows and outflows. “Between December 5, 2022, and April 14, 2023, the hotel received over N99 million as inflows into its account,” the witness said.
During cross-examination, defence counsel Joseph Daudu asked if any money had been transferred from a government agency, to which the witness replied no. Kwayil also said he did not know the purpose of the transactions.
Second Testimony
The prosecution also called Olomotane Egoro, a compliance officer at Access Bank. Egoro testified that the EFCC requested account opening packages and statements of account for Agro Allied Limited and Khadimiya for Justice and Development Initiative from the bank in 2025.
When the prosecution sought to admit the documents as exhibits, Malami’s counsel objected, claiming Egoro was not subpoenaed and had not made an extrajudicial statement to the EFCC. The presiding judge overruled the objection, noting that the prosecution had listed a representative of Access Bank as a witness. The documents were admitted as exhibits C1 and C2.
Egoro said Abdulaziz Malami is the sole signatory of the Agro Allied Limited account. He testified that the company took a N400 million loan from Access Bank, which was credited to the account on October 9, 2020. He added, “N100 million was sent to New Horizon Ltd in five transactions of N20 million each, while on October 9, 2020, another N100 million was sent into the account of Rayhaan Bustan.”
The witness also said the loan was fully repaid on July 14, 2022.
Regarding exhibit C2, Egoro said the account belongs to Khadimiya for Justice and Development Initiatives, with Abdulaziz Malami, Usman Abubakar, and Farouk Abubakar as signatories. “The total inflows into the account, beginning from October 17, 2019, to March 3, 2020, were N77.986 million, while the total lodgement into the account between March 26, 2020, and January 1, 2025, was N1.857 billion,” he said.
During cross-examination, Malami’s counsel asked Egoro if he knew the purpose of the transactions. He replied, “I did not know the purposes and objectives of the payments, my lord.” He also said he did not know the individuals who made the payments, and confirmed that no funds had come from any government agency.
Justice Joyce Abdulmalik adjourned the trial to April 29 for continuation.
