The Nigerian Police Force has handed over the suspended DCP Abba Kyari, the erstwhile Commander of Intelligence Response Team (IRT) at the Force Intelligence Bureau of the Nigerian Police Force, to NDLEA authorities.
This was disclosed in a statement by the NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, on Monday.
According to the statement, five of the wanted suspects namely DCP Abba Kyari; ACP Sunday J. Ubua; ASP Bawa James; Inspector Simon Agirgba and Inspector John Nuhu were driven into the National Headquarters of NDLEA in Abuja at about 5 pm on Monday 14th February to formally hand them over for interrogation and further investigation.
The Agency also assures Nigerians that no stone will be left unturned to ensure that all suspects already in custody and those that may still be indicted in the course of the investigation will face the full weight of the law at the end of the ongoing probe.
Earlier on Monday, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) during a press briefing declared Abba Kyari, the suspended deputy commissioner of police wanted over an alleged connection with drugs barons and his failure to honour the invitation sent to him
During the press briefing, Babafemi stated that the anti-drug agency strongly believes that “DCP Kyari is a member of a drug cartel that operates the Brazil-Ethiopia-Nigeria illicit drug pipeline”.
The NDLEA spokesperson said Kyari has questions to answer in an ongoing drug case.
He narrated how Kyari and the intelligence response team arrested some traffickers who arrived in the country from Ethiopia with 25kg of cocaine.
Babafemi alleged that Kyari and his team proposed to take 15kg of the seized cocaine for themselves.
“Let me give a synopsis of what transpired. The saga started on Friday, January 21, 2022, when DCP Kyari initiated a call to one of the NDLEA officers in Abuja at 2:12 pm,” the NDLEA spokesperson said.
“When the officer returned the call two minutes later, Kyari informed him he was coming to see him, to discuss an operational matter after the Juma’at service.
“He appeared at the agreed venue of the meeting with the officer and went straight to the crux of the matter.
“This was it: His team had intercepted and arrested some traffickers that came into the country from Ethiopia with, according to him, 25kg of cocaine. He proposed a drug deal whereby he and his team are to take 15kg of the cocaine and leave 10kg for the prosecution of the suspects arrested with the illicit drug in Enugu.
“In the meantime, the purloined cocaine will be replaced with a dummy worth 15kg. He asked the NDLEA officer to persuade men of the FCT Command to play along as well.
“Now, anybody who is in touch with the reality of the renewed drug war by NDLEA since January 18, 2021, would know that that was a tall order because our officers and men have rededicated themselves to the war against illicit drugs and what Kyari was asking for was not tenable, not in this new dispensation, not with the new NDLEA.
“Well, I am not here to wash his dirty linen in public. But I want us to understand how we arrive at this juncture whereby we are having this press briefing.
“NDLEA has the mandate to take custody of suspects and consignments of drugs seized by other arms of law enforcement.
“And there is a standard protocol for such transfer. This we duly followed. The suspects and drugs were delivered to us on February 8 but the last part of the process, yet to be completed, is the debriefing of Kyari.
“Gentlemen of the press, DCP Abba Kyari was invited by NDLEA for debriefing on Thursday, February 10 through two main channels because there are a whole lot of questions begging for answers.
“The invitation was legitimate and formal according to our protocol. But up till the close of office hours on Friday, February 11, he refused to respond. Up till this moment, he hasn’t responded.
“We are a law-abiding agency of the government. We follow due process. In that vein, we will not detain suspects beyond the stipulated period according to the law before we charge them to court. And Kyari must be debriefed before the suspects are arraigned in court.
“Having failed to honor the official invitation, NDLEA has no option but to declare DCP Abba Kyari of the Nigerian Police WANTED, right from this very moment.”
However, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) gathered that the Police Headquarters on Monday also revealed the identities of the suspected drug barons who allegedly conspired with DSP Abba Kyari and four others to move illicit drugs into the country.
The suspects had been arrested by the police and handed over to the NDLEA for further investigation.
The Deputy Force Public Relations Officer (DFPRO), Olumuyiwa Adejobi, said in a statement in Abuja that some NDLEA officials were allegedly involved in the drug deal.
He said that the police had carried out a discreet investigation when it received a request from the NDLEA on February 10.
“In line with standard administrative procedure of the Force, the Inspector General of Police ordered a high-level, discreet, and in-house investigation into the allegations.
“The interim investigations report revealed that two international drug couriers identified as Chibunna Patrick Umeibe and Emeka Alphonsus, both males, were arrested at Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, on Jan. 19.
“The suspects were arrested upon their arrival from Addis Ababa aboard an Ethiopian Airlines flight ET917.
“The arrest led to the recovery of a substantial quantity of powdery substance suspected to be cocaine from the two narcotic couriers.
“The operation which was intelligence-driven was undertaken by a Unit of the Police Intelligence Response Team (IRT),” he said.
Mr. Adejobi, a chief superintendent of police, said the case and the two suspects were subsequently transferred to the NDLEA on Jan. 25.
He said the findings of the in-house investigation ordered by the Inspector-General of Police established reasonable grounds for strong suspicion that the Intelligence Response Team (IRT) officers involved in the operation could have been involved in some underhand and unprofessional dealings.
The Police spokesman said the finding showed that the officers were allegedly involved in official corruption which compromised ethical standards in their dealings with the suspects and exhibits recovered.
“Beyond this, the Police investigation also established that the international narcotics cartel involved in this case have strong ties with some officers of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) who are on their payroll.
“The two arrested drug couriers confirmed that the modus is for the transnational drug barons to conspire with the NDLEA officers on duty and send them their pre-boarding photographs for identification.
“The idea is to ensure seamless clearance, and unhindered passage out of the airport with the narcotics being trafficked,” he added.
According to him, the two arrested drug couriers also confirmed that they have been enjoying this relationship with the NDLEA officers at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport since 2021.
He said the narcotics, in the instant case of Jan. 19, were identified and cleared by the NDLEA officers as customary, having received their pre-departure photographs and other details before they arrived in Enugu.
He said the suspects were on their way out with the narcotics when they were apprehended by the Police.
Mr. Adejobi said police investigations report had earlier indicted Kyari, who had been on suspension for alleged involvement in a fraud case being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI).
He said Kyari’s involvement in the recent allegation occurred while his suspension from service was subsisting.
“On the strength of the findings of the in-house Police Investigation Panel, the I-G has ordered the immediate arrest and transfer of all the indicted police officers to the NDLEA for conclusive investigation.
“Appropriate disciplinary actions are also being initiated against them by the Force leadership,” he said.
Mr. Adejobi said the IGP has formally requested the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA to ensure the identification, arrest, and investigation of the agency’s officers involved in the alleged criminal act.
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