Premium Times, Nigeria: The National Drug Law and Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has charged Abba Kyari, a suspended deputy commissioner of police, and six others with offences of illegal cocaine dealing.
The agency announced via its Twitter handle on Thursday that it filed the charges at the Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday, February 28.
This came as the Attorney-General of the Federation began the move to extradite Mr Kyari to the United States over separate charges of fraud.
PREMIUM TIMES reported earlier on Thursday that the AGF has filed an application for Mr Kyari’s extradition following a request for him by the U.S. authorities.
U.S. authorities had last year named Mr Kyari among five alleged conspirators of Ramon Abass a.k.a Huspuppi, an Instagram celebrity, in a $1.1 million fraud perpetrated against a Qatari businessperson.
While Mr Kyari was still on suspension over the fraud allegation, the NDLEA announced in February that he had been fingered in an illegal cocaine dealing.
The anti-narcotic agency, on February 22, 2022, obtained an order from the Federal High Court in Abuja to detain him and his co-suspects for two weeks.
Mr Kyari who filed a N500 million rights enforcement suit against the NDLEA, denied involvement in the illegal drugs dealing and describe the allegation as fictitious.
Kyari and his co-defendants
The NDLEA, on Monday, filed eight charges against Mr Kyari and his six co-defendants at the Federal High Court in Abuja, accusing them of illegal dealing in cocaine between January 19 and 25, 2022.
Four of Mr Kyari’s co-defendants are said to be police officers belonging to the Intelligence Response Team (IRT), a police unit that was being led by Mr Kyari until he was suspended following the charges filed against him in the U.S. last year.
The four IRT operatives charged along with Mr Kyari are: Sunday J. Ubua, an assistant commissioner of police; Bawa James, an assistant superintendent of police; Simon Agirgba, an inspector; John Nuhu, also an inspector.
The other co-defendants are Chibunna Patrick Umeibe and Emeka Alphonsus Ezenwanne.
NDLEA’s Director of Legal Services, Joseph Sunday, signed the charges, noting than the various offences are contrary to and punishable under various provisions of the NDLEA Act.
The agency Mr Kyari and the IRT members of unlawfully dealing with and tampering with cocaine.
The prosecutors also accused Mr Kyari, in a count which features only him as the sole defendant, of attempting to obstruct the NDLEA and its authorised officers by offering $61,400 to a senior anti-narcotic operative as inducement to prevent the testing of the 17.55kg of cocaine.
The two non-police officers among the defendants – Messrs Umeibe and Ezenwanne – were accused of conspiring with others at large, and importing 21.35kg of cocaine into the Nigeria.
Charges in full
In Count 1, Mr Kyari and his co-defendants were said to have between January 19 and 25, 2022, dealt in 17. 55 kilograms of cocaine and committed and offence contrary to and punishable under section 14 (b) of the Natural Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act, CAP 30 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.
In Count 2, Mr Kyari and the IRT members were said to have, between January 19 and 25, 2022, dealt in 17.55kilogrammes of cocaine without lawful authority and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under section 11(c) of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act, CAP N30 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004
The rest of the charges read as follow:
COUNT 3
“That you DCP Abba Kyari, ACP Sunday J Ubua, ASP Bawa James, Inspector Simon Agirgba and Inspector John Nuhu, all male, all male, Adult on or about the 19th to 25th January 2022, within the office of the Inspector-General of (IGP) Intelligence Response Team (IRT), Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court conspired amongst yourselves and with ASP John Umoru (now at large) to unlawfully tamper with 21.35 kilogramames of cocaine seized from Chibunna Patrick Umeibe and Emeka Alphons Ezenwannne in the custody of the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Intelligence Response Team (IRT), by removing and disposing 17.55 kilogrammes of the cocaine and by substituting same with some other substance and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under section 14(b) of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency ACT CAP N30 Laws of the Federation 2004”
COUNT 4
That you DCP Abba Kyari, ACP Sunday J Ubua, ASP Bawa James, Inspector Simon Agirgba and Inspector John Nuhu, all male Adult on or about the 19th to 25th January 2022, within the office of the Inspector-General of (IGP) Intelligence Response Team (IRT), Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable unlawfully tampered with 21.35 kilogramames of cocaine seized from Chibunna Patrick Umeibe and Emeka Alphonsus Ezenwannne in the custody of the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Intelligence Response Team (IRT), by removing and disposing 17.55 kilogrammes of the cocaine and substituting same with some other substance and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under section 16 of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency ACT CAP N30 Laws of the Federation 2004.
COUNT 5:
That you Chibunna Patrick Umeibe, male adult and Emeka Alphonsus Ezenwanne, male adult on or about the 19th January 2022 at Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu Nigeria, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court without lawful authority imported 21.35kilogrammes of cocaine and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under section 14(b) of the National Drug Law enforcement Agency ACT CAP N30 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.
COUNT 6:
That you Chibunna Patrick Umeibe, male, adult; and you Emeka Alphonsus Ezenwanne, male adult on or about the 25th January 2022 at Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, Nigeria within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court without lawful authority imported 21.35kilogrammes of cocaine and thereby committed an offence contrary to an punishable under section 11(a) of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency ACT CAP N30 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.
COUNT 7:
That you Chibunna Patrick Umeibe, male, adult; and you Emeka Alphonsus Ezenwanne, male adult and one IK, now at large, on the 25th January 2022, at Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, Nigeria within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court knowingly possessed 21.35 kilogrammes of cocaine and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under section 11(d) of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act Cap N30 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.
COUNT 8:
That you DCP Abba Kyari, on or about 25th January 2022, at a restaurant on Port Harcourt Crescent, Area 11, Garki Abuja, within the jurisdiction of the court, attempted to obstruct the Agency and its authorised officers in the exercise of their duties by offering the sum of $61,400.00 USD (sixty-one thousand, four hundred United States of America Dollars) to a senior officer of the Agency as inducement to prevent the testing of the
17.55kilogrammes of substance used to replace the cocaine seized from Chibunna Patrick Umeibe and Emeka Alphonsus Ezenwanne and thereby committed an offence contrary to section 23 and punishable under section 49 of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act Cap N30 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.
The case has yet to be assigned to a judge for arraignment.
