The Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday, ordered the remand of Kano State Independent Electoral Commission (KANSIEC) chairman Sani Malumfashi and two others in custody over an alleged N1 billion money laundering offence.
The judge, James Omotosho, made the order after Mr Malumfashi and his co-defendants pleaded not guilty to six counts during their arraignment by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
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Mr Omotosho directed that the defendants be remanded in the Correctional Centre in Kuje, Abuja, pending the hearing and determination of their formal bail application.
The judge then adjourned the matter until 28 January (Wednesday) for the consideration of the defendants’ bail application.
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The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Mr Malumfashi’s co-defendants are the Secretary of KANSIEC, Anas Muhammed Mustapha, and Ado Garba, a deputy director, Account Department of the state electoral body.
The charges filed 1 December 2025 by ICPC’s lawyer, Osuobeni Akponimisingha, accused the defendants of unlawfully taking the sums of N450 million, N310 million and N260 million between the months of November and December 2024.
The ICPC alleged that Messrs Malumfashi, Mustapha and Garba, between November and December 2024 in Kano, conspired to take possession of the sum of N450 million cash through SLM Agro Global Farm account numbers 0018222634 and 0015932143 with Jaiz Bank on 1 November 2024.
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The money was said to form part of the proceeds of an unlawful activity.
The offence is contrary to Sections 2(1)(b) & 18(2)(d) and punishable under Section 18(3) of the Money Laundering (Prevention & Prohibition) Act, 2022, among other counts.
At the start of Tuesday’s proceedings, Mr Akponimisingha requested that the charges be read to the defendants to enable them take their plea and the defence lawyer, Mahmud Magaji, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), did not object.
They pleaded not guilty to all six counts.
The prosecuting lawyer then applied for a trial date to start to present witnesses.
Responding, Mr Magaji sought to make an oral application for his client’s bail.
He said the defendants had been enjoying the administrative bail earlier granted by the prosecution and had always complied with the bail conditions.
He, however, said that if the bail was not granted, a short date should be given to file a formal bail request.
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The judge, Mr Omotosho, requested that a formal, written bail application be filed to enable the prosecution to respond appropriately in the interest of fair hearing.
The judge then adjourned the matter until Wednesday for hearing of the bail application.
NAN reports that the defendants were to be arraigned before another judge of the same court, Joyce Abdulmalik, in 2025 but the case was struck out over ICPC’s failure to effect service of court documents on the defendants.
(NAN)
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