The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has confiscated the international passport of a former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), as part of an ongoing probe into the whereabouts of $490 million Abacha loot repatriated under the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT).
PLATFORM TIMES gathered that the former minister was released around 1am on Saturday after hours of interrogation at the EFCC headquarters in Abuja.
One of the conditions for his temporary release was that he must report daily to the commission for further questioning over the next one month.
A source within the commission said Malami would remain restricted within the country until investigators conclude their work or a court grants him travel clearance.
According to the commission’s fact sheet, Malami has several issues to clarify regarding the management of the recovered funds, which were repatriated to Nigeria during his tenure as AGF.
An EFCC source said: “We have asked him to explain the whereabouts of the $490 million Abacha loot secured through MLAT.
We did not say he stole the money, but he must account for it. Considering the volume of documents involved, we seized his passport to ensure unrestricted access to him during the investigation.”
The source added that Malami cannot travel out of the country except with EFCC approval or a High Court order.
The official also hinted that findings from the probe would be made public after what he described as a “painstaking investigation.”
Reacting on his X handle, the former AGF denied wrongdoing, claiming the allegations against him were invented by his detractors.
He wrote: “I give glory to Allah for His divine intervention. The engagement was successful, and I am released while on an appointment for further engagement as the truth relating to the fabricated allegations against me continues to unfold.”
Malami, however, remained silent on the confiscation of his international passport.
Nigeria has recovered billions of dollars in stolen funds traced to the late military dictator, General Sani Abacha.
Each tranche of recovery has historically sparked scrutiny regarding utilisation, disbursement, and accountability.
Civil society organisations, including CISLAC and Transparency International, recently insisted that Nigeria and its foreign partners must uphold global best practices in asset recovery and management.
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