EFCC Arraigns Ex-AGF Malami Over ₦9bn Money Laundering, 30 Choice Properties - Newstrends
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EFCC Arraigns Ex-AGF Malami Over ₦9bn Money Laundering, 30 Choice Properties

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Immediate-past Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Abubakar Malami (SAN)
Immediate-past Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN)

EFCC Arraigns Ex-AGF Malami Over ₦9bn Money Laundering, 30 Choice Properties

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has slammed a 16-count money laundering charge against immediate-past Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), over alleged laundering of about ₦9 billion used to acquire no fewer than 30 high-value properties across Abuja, Kebbi, Kano and other locations.

Malami was charged alongside his son, Abdulaziz Malami, and Hajia Bashir Asabe, an employee of Rahamaniyya Properties Limited, under provisions of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended) and the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.

According to the charge sheet dated December 23, 2025, the EFCC alleged that the former AGF laundered funds through several corporate entities, including Metropolitan Auto Tech Limited, to conceal the unlawful origin of proceeds allegedly derived while he served in office between 2015 and 2023 under the administration of the late President Muhammadu Buhari.

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The anti-graft agency accused Malami of indirectly acquiring and concealing funds used to purchase luxury houses, hotels, duplexes, estates, plazas and large expanse of land, with the combined value of the properties put at about ₦212.8 billion. Many of the assets were allegedly acquired during his eight years as the nation’s chief law officer.

The EFCC further alleged that Malami and his co-defendants used bank accounts in Sterling Bank and Union Bank, as well as cash collateral arrangements, to disguise illicit funds, including transactions running into hundreds of millions and billions of naira.

Investigators are also considering invoking the Non-Conviction Based Asset Forfeiture provisions of the EFCC Establishment Act to temporarily seize some of the properties. The commission has a 14-day window to invite interested parties to show cause why the assets should not be forfeited to the Federal Government.

The trial is expected to commence at the Federal High Court, Abuja, with the EFCC awaiting a date for arraignment. In what insiders describe as a high-profile prosecution, the commission has assembled a formidable legal team led by Chief Jibrin Okutepa (SAN) and Ekene Iheanacho (SAN), alongside 14 other lawyers. At least 10 witnesses have been frontloaded in line with the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA).

As of yesterday, there was no official response from Malami, who remains in EFCC custody. However, in his last public statement, the former minister had called on the EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, to recuse himself from the case.

The charges mark one of the most extensive corruption cases ever filed against a former Attorney-General of the Federation, underscoring the EFCC’s renewed push against alleged high-level financial crimes.

EFCC Arraigns Ex-AGF Malami Over ₦9bn Money Laundering, 30 Choice Properties

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School Attack: 13-Year-Old Student Kills Teacher, Injures Two

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School Attack: 13-Year-Old Student Kills Teacher, Injures Two

Slovakia School Attack: 13-Year-Old Student Kills Teacher, Injures Two

A 13-year-old student has been detained after a knife attack at an elementary school in Slovakia left a 61-year-old teacher dead and two other people injured.

The attack occurred on Tuesday morning, September 29, 2026, at a school in Staškov, a town in northwestern Slovakia’s Čadca district.

Police said the student attacked teachers and pupils with a sharp object during the school day. The suspect was taken into custody, while authorities said the situation was brought under control and there was no continuing threat to the public.

The teacher who died was identified as a 61-year-old woman. Another female teacher and a pupil were also injured and taken to hospital.

The second teacher suffered a stab wound to the chest and was hospitalised with serious injuries. Officials later said her life was not in danger.

The injured pupil, reported to be a girl, was in critical condition and was transported by helicopter for further treatment.

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Emergency medical teams, including ambulances and rescue helicopters, were deployed to the school following the attack.

Slovak authorities detained the student and launched an investigation into the incident. Police had not publicly confirmed a motive for the attack at the time of reporting.

Slovakia’s Interior Minister Matúš Šutaj Eštok, Education Minister Tomáš Drucker and Health Minister Kamil Šaško travelled to Staškov following the incident.

Education authorities also offered assistance and professional support to the affected school, while officials appealed for respect for the privacy of the children, their families and school staff.

President Peter Pellegrini and Prime Minister Robert Fico expressed condolences to the victims and their families following the Slovakia school attack.

The incident has renewed attention on school violence in Slovakia, following other serious attacks at schools in recent years.

In January 2025, an 18-year-old student was accused of fatally stabbing a deputy principal and another student at a secondary school in Spišská Stará Ves in eastern Slovakia. A separate school attack in 2020 also left a deputy principal dead and several others injured.

Police continued their investigation into Tuesday’s school stabbing in Staškov, while further details about the circumstances surrounding the attack remained under investigation.

School Attack: 13-Year-Old Student Kills Teacher, Injures Two

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Edo Court Sentences Four to Death Over Kidnapping, Armed Robbery

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Edo Court Sentences Four to Death Over Kidnapping, Armed Robbery

Edo Court Sentences Four to Death Over Kidnapping, Armed Robbery

Four men have been sentenced to death by the Edo State Special Criminal Court after being convicted on multiple charges arising from a kidnapping, armed robbery, cultism and firearms case in Benin City.

Justice Aigbona Momodu delivered the judgment on Tuesday, September 29, 2026, in what was the court’s first reported judgment in a kidnapping case since it became operational.

The convicts were identified as Marvellous Isaac, 32; Wisdom Michael, 36; Rufus Emete Michael, 30; and Gift Raphael, 27.

The case arose from the June 14, 2026 abduction of a woman at the Vegetable Market area along Airport Road in Benin City.

The victim was reportedly at the market with her husband and children when armed men abducted her. She was later released unharmed.

The incident prompted a police investigation that led to the arrest and prosecution of the four men.

Police reportedly recovered a Lexus RX 350, which investigators linked to the abduction, as well as a pump-action firearm, ammunition, a motorcycle and cash.

One alleged member of the group, identified as Precious, was reportedly killed during a security operation, while Marvellous Isaac was arrested on June 18 following an alleged exchange of gunfire with police operatives.

The defendants had pleaded not guilty during the trial.

After considering evidence presented by the prosecution and defence, the court convicted the defendants on the relevant counts.

According to the reported judgment, Marvellous Isaac received seven years’ imprisonment on Count 1, death sentences on Counts 2 to 9, 10 years’ imprisonment on Count 10 and life imprisonment on Count 11.

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Wisdom Michael was sentenced to seven years on Count 1 and death sentences on Counts 2 to 9.

Rufus Emete Michael received seven years on Count 1 and death sentences on Counts 2, 3, 4, 6 and 7.

Gift Raphael was sentenced to seven years on Count 1 and death sentences on Counts 2, 4, 6 and 8.

Earlier reports on the case had described the defendants as facing a 10-count charge, while the judgment reports refer to an additional Count 11. The available reports do not provide sufficient detail to independently assign every offence to each of the 11 counts, so the sentencing breakdown above follows the counts specifically reported in the judgment.

Justice Momodu said the court had no discretion over the punishment prescribed by law for the offences attracting the death penalty.

The court also ordered the confiscation of a JoJef pump-action firearm and four cartridges tendered as exhibits during the trial.

The firearm and ammunition were ordered to be handed over to the Edo State Police Armourer at the State Criminal Investigation Department (CID) for destruction within 30 days.

The judgment marked the first kidnapping-related judgment delivered by the Edo State Special Criminal Court, a specialised court established to handle kidnapping, cultism and other serious violent-crime cases.

The court became operational on July 1, 2026, as part of efforts to accelerate the prosecution of serious criminal cases in Edo State.

The sentencing concludes the trial at the Special Criminal Court, but available reports do not indicate whether the four convicts have filed appeals against their convictions or sentences.

The death sentences are therefore sentences imposed by the trial court and should not be presented as final or carried out unless subsequent legal proceedings establish that position.

Edo Court Sentences Four to Death Over Kidnapping, Armed Robbery

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Chimamanda Adichie: Hospital Seeks to Stop Inquest Into Son’s Death

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Chimamanda Adichie: Hospital Seeks to Stop Inquest Into Son’s Death

Chimamanda Adichie: Hospital Seeks to Stop Inquest Into Son’s Death

A Lagos State High Court has fixed October 12, 2026, to rule on an application by Eurapharma Care Services Nigeria Limited, operators of Euracare Multi-Specialist Hospital, seeking to halt the coroner’s inquest into the death of Chimamanda Adichie’s son, Nkanu Adichie-Esege.

Justice Aishat Opesanwo fixed the date after hearing arguments from the hospital, Nkanu’s parents and other parties involved in the legal dispute.

The hospital is challenging the continuation of the coroner’s inquest, which is examining the circumstances surrounding the death of the 21-month-old child at Euracare Multi-Specialist Hospital in Lagos on January 7, 2026.

Eurapharma is seeking judicial review orders, including certiorari, to quash decisions already made by the coroner and prohibition, to restrain the coroner, Magistrate Atinuke Adetunji, from continuing with the proceedings.

One of the hospital’s key arguments concerns the fact that Nkanu’s remains were cremated, which it argues prevents a post-mortem examination and affects the coroner’s ability to proceed with the inquest.

The hospital has also challenged the procedure adopted by the coroner regarding the presentation of evidence, particularly a direction requiring Euracare to present its case before the family of the deceased.

Eurapharma’s counsel, Taiwo Osipitan, SAN, argued that the hospital should not be required to open its case before the family, which has raised allegations concerning the medical care provided to Nkanu, first presents its evidence.

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However, lawyers representing Chimamanda Adichie and her husband, Dr Ivara Esege, urged the High Court to dismiss the hospital’s application.

Their counsel, Kemi Pinheiro, SAN, argued that the application was premature because the coroner had not made any substantive decision capable of being challenged through judicial review.

Pinheiro also disputed the argument that the cremation of Nkanu’s remains deprived the coroner of jurisdiction.

He relied on provisions of the Lagos State Coroners System Law, including Sections 21 and 31, arguing that an inquest could proceed even where a body was unavailable for inspection.

The lawyer described the inquest as a fact-finding process rather than a criminal trial, stressing that the coroner’s proceedings do not determine criminal guilt or impose criminal liability.

He argued that the coroner’s eventual findings would be submitted to the appropriate authorities, including the Lagos State Attorney-General and the Director of Public Prosecutions, for any further action considered necessary.

The Lagos State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Lawal Pedro, SAN, also urged the court to dismiss the hospital’s application.

Counsel representing Atlantis Paediatric Hospital Limited similarly opposed the application and argued that the issue concerning the order of evidence had already been addressed during proceedings before the coroner.

According to the arguments presented in court, parties had previously agreed that the family would lead evidence first, although the hospital had earlier agreed to commence its case because it was the party that initially sought the inquest.

The dispute is not the first time the Chimamanda Adichie son death inquest has faced a legal challenge.

In June, the Lagos State High Court granted Eurapharma leave to commence judicial review proceedings and temporarily stayed further proceedings before the coroner pending determination of the substantive application.

The hospital had argued that the coroner acted without jurisdiction and had also challenged procedural decisions made during the inquest.

The coroner’s proceedings began after Nkanu died at Euracare in January following medical treatment. His parents subsequently raised concerns about the circumstances surrounding his treatment and alleged breaches of the duty of care.

The family has alleged possible medical negligence, while Euracare has denied wrongdoing and described the allegations as inaccurate and unfounded.

Earlier reports on the case said the child had been referred to Euracare for diagnostic procedures and that arrangements were being made for further treatment abroad.

The family has maintained that it wants the inquest to establish the circumstances surrounding Nkanu’s death and provide answers about the medical care he received.

The current court proceedings, however, are focused on whether the coroner can lawfully continue with the inquest and whether the hospital’s complaints about the procedure and the cremation of the remains provide grounds for judicial intervention.

Justice Opesanwo is expected to determine the hospital’s application on October 12, 2026.

The ruling will determine the immediate legal direction of the coroner’s inquest into Nkanu Adichie-Esege’s death, while the underlying allegations of medical negligence remain unresolved.

Chimamanda Adichie: Hospital Seeks to Stop Inquest Into Son’s Death

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