A compliance officer from Zenith Bank, Mashelia Arhyel Bata, testified on Wednesday in the Federal High Court in Abuja regarding the ongoing N8.7 billion money laundering trial involving former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami.

The former minister is being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) alongside his wife, Hajia Bashir Asabe, and his son, Abubakar Abdulaziz Malami. The trio faces an amended 16-count charge, which includes allegations of conspiracy, concealment, and the laundering of N8.7 billion in funds purportedly derived from unlawful activities.

Testimony Details

During his appearance before Justice Joyce Abdulmalik, Mr. Bata confirmed that Zenith Bank had filed Suspicious Transaction Reports (STRs) concerning accounts associated with the former minister.

Under cross-examination by defense counsel Adebayo Adedeji (SAN), the witness acknowledged that the financial deposits appearing in the relevant account statements were compliant with Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) guidelines. However, he emphasized that the bank proceeded with filing STRs to fulfill its regulatory obligations.

"We had to file a Suspicious Transaction Report. We did file," Mr. Bata stated during the proceedings.

Procedural Developments

A brief legal dispute arose during re-examination when prosecution counsel J.S. Okutepa (SAN) requested that the witness define the criteria for an STR. While the defense objected—arguing that the previous testimony was unambiguous—Justice Abdulmalik overruled the objection, citing Section 215(3) of the Evidence Act.

Explaining the regulatory standard, Mr. Bata noted that STRs are typically initiated when funds are deposited in repetitive or unconventional patterns. "Any deposition of funds seen in a pattern or repetitive, you must escalate it to the NFIU [Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit]," he clarified.

Mr. Bata further stated that his testimony was based on his function as a compliance officer responsible for managing correspondence from law enforcement agencies, and he noted that he did not serve as the account officer or relationship manager for the accounts under investigation.

Following the testimony, the court discharged the witness and adjourned the trial until May 22 for further proceedings.