The Federal High Court in Abuja on Thursday, dismissed a case filed by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, against suspended DCP Abba Kyari on allegations bordering on non-disclosure of assets.
Justice James Omotosho dismissed the suit, filed against Kyari and his younger brothers, Mohammed Kyari and Ali Kyari, for failure of the anti-narcotic agency to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt. The judge held that the burden of proving a case beyond reasonable doubt falls in the prosecution which it had failed to do so, describing the case against Kyari and his brothers as persecution.
However, news men reported that the NDLEA is prosecuting Kyari, the former head of Police Intelligence Response Team (IRT), and his two brothers on allegations bordering on non-disclosure of assets.
Justice James Omotosho fixed the date after counsel for the NDLEA, Sunday Joseph; Kyari’s lawyer, Onyechi Ikpeazu, SAN, and his brothers’ counsel, Monjok Agom, adopted their processes and presented their arguments for and against the charge and the NDLEA, in the 23-count charge, named Abba, Mohammed and Ali as 1st to 3rd defendants respectively.
The anti-narcotics agency alleged that Abba and his two younger brothers; Mohammed and Ali, failed to make full disclosure of their assets, further saying that it uncovered 14 assets, including shopping malls, residential estate, polo playground, lands and farmland belonging to Kyari.
The NDLEA said the offences are punishable under Section 35 (3) (a) of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act, and Section 15 (3) (a) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011, but they pleaded not guilty to all the counts.
