The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has detained former Attorney‑General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, over transactions linked to the recovery of part of the Abacha loot.
Malami was first invited by the EFCC last week for questioning and released after several hours. He has now been taken into custody as investigations continue.
The former AGF has maintained his innocence, insisting he had no involvement in the alleged transactions.
In a statement titled “Clarifications on Allegations of Terrorism Financing”, Malami said his years in office were spent strengthening Nigeria’s fight against terrorism financing, not undermining it.
“As an officer responsible for upholding the law, I could not have acted as a lawbreaker,” he said.
Malami rejected reports linking him to terror suspects, describing them as politically motivated and misleading.
“I have never at any time been accused, invited, interrogated, investigated or charged by any security, law‑enforcement, regulatory or intelligence agency—within or outside Nigeria—in respect of terrorism financing or any related offence,” he stated.
He added that even the retired military officer cited as a source in the publication admitted he was not accusing Malami or others of financing terrorism but merely referred to vague “business” or “institutional” relationships.
“Mischievous and Unjust”
Malami condemned attempts to associate him with terrorism financing without evidence, calling such insinuations “mischievous and unjust.”
“Terrorism financing is a grave crime with devastating consequences for national security and human life. Any attempt to associate an individual with such an offence must be grounded in verifiable facts, due process and lawful findings, not conjecture or speculation,” he said.
He stressed that his public record in office contradicted any suggestion of complicity, pointing to reforms he spearheaded to strengthen Nigeria’s legal framework against money laundering and terror financing.
The EFCC has not issued an official statement on Malami’s detention.
Malami, who pledged to keep the public updated via his social media pages, has not posted anything on the matter in the last four days.
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