The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has denied allegations that it is illegally detaining former Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, SAN, insisting that no court order directing his release has been served on the commission.
In a statement issued on Wednesday and obtained by SaharaReporters, the EFCC’s lead counsel, Chief J.S. Okutepa, SAN, described reports claiming that Malami was granted bail through an ex-parte court order as misleading, bizarre, and professionally irresponsible.
Okutepa said he had received numerous calls from colleagues and members of the public questioning why the EFCC had not released Malami following reports that a court granted him bail on December 23, 2025. According to him, the reports stemmed from a press statement allegedly issued by an aide to Malami, accusing the EFCC of defying a court order.
“For the avoidance of doubt, I state categorically that as at the time of this statement, no court order has been served on my law firm or on the EFCC directing the release of Abubakar Malami,” Okutepa said.
He added that he only became aware of the purported bail order through social media, noting that it would be highly unusual for a court to grant bail ex-parte to a criminal suspect without notifying the detaining authority.
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 stressed that the remand order remains valid and has not been set aside.
According to him, Malami and his legal team were duly served with the remand order and were fully aware of it.
Despite this, Okutepa said Malami’s lawyers filed a fresh bail application before another FCT High Court sitting in Nyanya, claiming that the former Attorney-General was being unlawfully detained. The application was heard by Justice Babangida Hassan on December 15, 2025.
He explained that during the proceedings, the EFCC demonstrated that Malami’s detention was lawful and backed by a subsisting court order. Justice Hassan subsequently dismissed the bail application in a ruling delivered on December 18, 2025, holding that Malami was not being unlawfully detained.
Okutepa emphasised that the rulings of Justices Oriji and Hassan, delivered on December 10 and December 18 respectively, remain in force.
He expressed surprise that Malami’s legal team could allegedly approach another court for an ex-parte bail order without disclosing the existence of the earlier court decisions.
According to him, the clarification was necessary to prevent the public from being misled by what he described as false narratives and unnecessary media grandstanding.
“Abubakar Malami, SAN, is being lawfully detained pursuant to valid and subsisting court orders,” Okutepa said.
