The trial of the immediate past Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr Abubakar Malami (SAN), on money laundering charges continued before the Federal High Court in Abuja yesterday, as a bank official revealed how funds were repeatedly wired to the defendant through the bank account of a hotel.

The witness, Mr Daniel Simon Kwayil — a banks’ compliance officer — said the funds were transferred from the account of Meethaq Hotels Limited, which lists Malami’s wife, Hajia Asabe Rakiya Bashir, as its sole signatory.

Kwayil, who testified as the second prosecution witness (PW-2), identified Malami’s wife, who was in the dock, during the proceedings. Malami, who served as Justice Minister from November 11, 2015, to May 29, 2023, during President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration, is facing trial alongside his son, Abdulaziz, and his wife, Asabe.

They are answering to a 16-count amended charge of conspiracy, the disguising of, concealing of, and laundering the proceeds of unlawful activities. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), alleged that the defendants laundered public funds totalling about N9 billion.

The anti-graft agency told the court that in a bid to hide his proceeds of crime, the erstwhile AGF resorted to acquiring choice properties in various cities and states, including Abuja, Kebbi, and Kano.

It told the court that the defendants had, between July 2022 and June 2025, used a firm – Metropolitan Auto Tech Limited – to conceal over N1.01 billion in a bank account. They were further accused of using the same company to siphon about N600 million between September 2020 and February 2021.