The Federal High Court in Abuja has discharged and acquitted AA Oil Chairman Aliyu Abubakar, Malabu Oil and Gas Limited and other companies in two separate money laundering cases filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Justice Inyang Ekwo, who delivered the judgments on Thursday, October 15, 2026, held that the prosecution’s evidence was fundamentally flawed and failed to establish the allegations against the defendants beyond reasonable doubt.
In the case against Abubakar as the sole defendant, the judge faulted the prosecution’s forensic evidence, noting that a witness analysed photocopies rather than original documents during an examination of specimen signatures allegedly linked to the businessman.
“I find that the evidence of PW9 is fundamentally flawed,” Justice Ekwo held. The judge found that the absence of original documents undermined the prosecution witness’s evidence linking Abubakar to the alleged offences.
Court Faults EFCC’s Prosecution of Abubakar
Abubakar had previously been charged alongside former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Bello Adoke, in an amended 14-count charge bordering on alleged money laundering.
The case was registered as suit number FHC/ABJ/CR/31/17. Both defendants pleaded not guilty, and the trial subsequently commenced.
Adoke was later discharged, but the court ruled that the prosecution had established a prima facie case against Abubakar on Counts 5, 6, 8 and 9. Consequently, the businessman’s no-case submission on those counts was dismissed, allowing the proceedings against him to continue.
In the latest judgment concerning Abubakar as the sole defendant, Justice Ekwo found the prosecution’s forensic evidence legally insufficient, citing the witness’s reliance on photocopies instead of original documents.
The court consequently discharged and acquitted the businessman.
Malabu Oil, Other Companies Also Acquitted
In a separate case, marked FHC/ABJ/CR/268/16, the EFCC prosecuted Malabu Oil and Gas Limited, A-Group Construction Company Limited, Rocky Top Resources Limited, Mega Tech Engineering Limited, Novel Properties and Development Company Limited, Carlin International Nigeria Limited and other defendants over allegations of money laundering and conspiracy.
Justice Ekwo also discharged and acquitted the defendants covered by the ruling in that case noting that the charges were fundamentally flawed and had not been “proven beyond reasonable doubt”. The court also considered the prosecution’s decision to proceed with the case despite a previous directive from the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF).
According to the proceedings, the AGF had communicated with the EFCC in September 2018, directing the commission to reconsider the charges in view of concerns about the evidence linking the defendants to the alleged offences.
Justice Ekwo faulted the prosecution’s handling of the matter, holding that it had proceeded contrary to the AGF’s directive.
Background to the Malabu Oil Case
The EFCC cases arose from allegations concerning financial transactions associated with OPL 245, one of Nigeria’s most controversial oil block deals.
The oil block was awarded to Malabu Oil and Gas Limited in 1998, but its ownership subsequently became the subject of disputes involving the company and the Federal Government.
A settlement was reached in 2006, while the transaction was later restructured in 2011 in an arrangement involving the Nigerian government and international oil companies.
