EFCC Denies Receiving Court Order to Release Malami, Insists Detention Is Lawful

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has firmly denied claims that it has been served with a court order directing the release of former Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, SAN, who is currently being investigated over an alleged ₦8.7 billion money laundering case.

Lead counsel to the EFCC, Chief Jibrin Samuel Okutepa, SAN, made the clarification in a statement posted on X on Wednesday, saying neither the anti-graft agency nor his law office had received any court order granting Malami bail, contrary to reports circulating in the media.

Okutepa said he had been inundated with calls from colleagues and members of the public questioning why the EFCC had not released Malami, following claims that an ex parte order granting him bail was allegedly made on December 23, 2025.

According to him, the claims originated from a press statement purportedly issued by an aide to Malami, accusing the EFCC of illegally detaining the former minister for 14 days in defiance of a court order.

“For the avoidance of doubt, I state categorically on my honour that as of the time of this statement, no court order has ever been served on my law firm or the EFCC,” Okutepa said.

He added that he only became aware of the alleged bail order through social media, describing it as “bizarre and surprising” for any court to grant bail ex parte to a criminal suspect without notifying the detaining authority.

The senior advocate stressed that such an application, if it indeed occurred, would amount to a gross abuse of court process, particularly in light of existing and subsisting court orders on the matter.

Okutepa recalled that on December 10, 2025, Justice S.C. Oriji of the FCT High Court ordered that Malami be remanded in EFCC custody for 14 days pending the conclusion of investigations. He said the order was properly served on Malami and his legal team and remains valid.

Despite this, he alleged that Malami’s lawyers filed a fresh bail application before the FCT High Court sitting in Nyanya, claiming the former AGF was being illegally detained.

He said the EFCC opposed the application before Justice Babaginda Hassan on December 15, 2025, after demonstrating that Malami’s detention was based on a valid court order. The court subsequently dismissed the bail application in a ruling delivered on December 18, 2025.

“The orders of Justices Oriji and Hassan made on December 10 and December 18, 2025, respectively, are still extant and have not been set aside,” Okutepa stated.

He expressed surprise that Malami’s legal team, despite being aware of the existing orders, could allegedly approach another court for an ex parte bail application, and that such an application could be granted without regard to earlier rulings.

Okutepa said his clarification was necessary to prevent the public from being misled and to reaffirm that the EFCC was acting within the law.

“Abubakar Malami, SAN, is being lawfully detained upon valid and subsisting court orders,” he said.

The clarification follows claims by Malami’s media aide, Mohammed Doka, that the former Attorney-General had been granted bail by a Federal High Court in the Federal Capital Territory on Tuesday.