Eshioromeh Sebastian in Abuja
A former Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, has accused operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission of storming his Maitama residence with armed personnel to forcefully evict his family, describing the action as illegal and conducted without a valid court order.
Speaking with journalists on Tuesday at his chambers in Wuse 2, Abuja, Malami said the anti-graft agency overreached its authority by attempting to take physical possession of the property while a legal challenge against the forfeiture order was still pending before the Federal High Court.
“There was an attempt yesterday by the EFCC, which indeed was a co-litigant, in respect of pending criminal proceedings before the Federal High Court against my person,” Malami said.
He noted that while the court granted an interim forfeiture order on January 6, 2026, the ruling contained no explicit directive authorising the immediate takeover of the premises or the removal of its occupants.
“The most interesting part of that order was that there were no clear directives or instructions that the premises would be taken over forthwith or perhaps be sold, or perhaps evicting the occupants,” he stated.
According to the former AGF, the commission’s operatives first arrived at the residence on Monday and returned on Tuesday with additional armed personnel to complete the operation.
“They were unable to conclude the process yesterday and reinforced this morning with a lot of personnel that are armed and indeed forcefully took over possession of my family residence and the family members taken out of possession,” Malami alleged.
He emphasised that he had already filed an application seeking to set aside the forfeiture order, with the matter scheduled for hearing on April 20, 2026. He argued that the EFCC should have awaited the court’s decision rather than taking unilateral action.
“Conventionally and traditionally, it is only natural, logical, legal and judicial that no party is expected to overreach by way of taking unilateral steps that would place a court in a situation of helplessness,” he said.
Malami further maintained that the execution of court orders is the exclusive responsibility of court bailiffs and not a prerogative of any party to litigation.
“Executions of the court orders and processes are exclusive functions of the court bailiffs, and are not in any way the prerogatives of a party to the litigation,” he said.
“My take is what is unfolding on the part of EFCC is indeed steps that are extrajudicial, that are unprecedented, that are unlawful, that are illegitimate and that are now intended apparently to cause a situation of helplessness on the part of the court which had already fixed the hearing of the application relating to these properties to a certain date which is fixed for 20th day of April, 2026.”
The former AGF also suggested that the timing of the enforcement could fuel suspicions of political motivation, noting that it followed closely after his release from detention and a series of solidarity visits from political associates.
“The fact that these things happen at a time when I was receiving tremendous goodwill messages, solidarity visits and courtesies, can certainly be a basis for people to insinuate political persecutions,” he said.
However, he declined to directly accuse anyone of political vendetta, stating that the matter was already before the court and that he would only pursue steps that were “legal, legitimate and judicial.”
Malami called on the media to report the situation objectively and urged authorities to allow due process to prevail.
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