Court admits nine exhibits in Malami's alleged money laundering trial
via Punch Nigeria3 min read
A Federal High Court in Abuja has admitted nine documentary exhibits in the alleged money laundering trial of former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, his wife, Hajia Bashir Asabe, and his son, Abubakar Abdulaziz Malami. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission EFCC is prosecuting the defendants on an amended 16-count charge involving conspiracy, procuring, disguising, concealing, and laundering proceeds of unlawful activities totaling N8,713,923,759.49. The exhibits, primarily banking documents, were tendered through Mashelia Arhyel Bata, a compliance officer with Zenith Bank Plc, who testified as the fourth prosecution witness. Bata confirmed that the bank provided electronic and hard copies of documents related to accounts linked to the defendants and corporate entities, including Rayhaan Hotels Limited, Rayhaan Bustan Agro Allied Limited, Nashab Limited, Golden Age Global Ventures, and Rahamaniyya Properties Limited, in response to an EFCC request. The admitted documents, dated between July 19, 2024, and March 12, 2026, were marked as Exhibits D1 to D9. Defence counsel J. B. Daudu's objection to the dates of some documents was overruled. The witness detailed transactions, including significant credit inflows into one of Malami's accounts, such as N194,791,608 from New Horizons Limited on November 11, 2020, N622.5 million from Rayhaan Bustan Agro Allied Limited on June 24, 2022, and two N250 million inflows from Rayhaan Hotels
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