Justice Obiora Egwatu on Thursday withdrew from overseeing the Federal High Court’s asset forfeiture proceedings involving former Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, SAN, and two other defendants, citing personal reasons.
Shortly after lawyers representing the parties announced their appearances, Egwatu informed the court that he would no longer handle the case.
“Ladies and gentlemen, for personal reasons, and for the better interest of justice, I will recuse myself from this case,” he said.
The judge ordered that the case file be returned to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court for reassignment.
“The instant charge CR/700/2025 filed FRN vs Abubakar Malami (SAN) and two others, shall be filed back to the Chief Judge for further directives,” Justice Egwuatu told the court.
The decision to step down comes amid an intense legal dispute over 57 properties valued at approximately ₦213.2bn, which Justice Emeka Nwite had temporarily forfeited to the Federal Government last month.
The interim forfeiture order was issued on January 6 after an ex parte application filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, which maintains that the assets are suspected proceeds of unlawful activities allegedly linked to Malami and his sons.
According to the EFCC, the assets include university buildings, hotels, shopping plazas, filling stations, residential estates, and extensive parcels of land located in Abuja, Kebbi, Kano, and Kaduna states, all of which it reasonably suspects were unlawfully acquired.
Justice Nwite’s interim ruling also directed the EFCC to publish the forfeiture notice in a national newspaper and invite interested parties to show cause within 14 days why the properties should not be permanently forfeited to the government.
Malami has challenged the interim forfeiture order, maintaining that his assets were lawfully obtained and properly declared to the relevant authorities.
The former Attorney-General asked the court to dismiss the case, cautioning against what he described as “conflicting outcomes” and “duplicative litigation,” and contending that the action infringed on his rights to property, presumption of innocence, and family life.
He also requested that the court restrain the EFCC from interfering with his ownership, possession, and control of three properties identified as numbers 9, 18, and 48 in the commission’s application, asserting that one of the properties is held in trust for the estate of his late father, Kadi Malami.
Discover more from LN247
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
