Drug ring: Kyari, others remanded, co-accused plead guilty
There was a mild at a Federal High Court, Abuja on Monday when two co-defendants of the suspended Deputy Commissioner of Police, Abba Kyari pleaded guilty to the hard drug trafficking charges against them.
However, despite their guilty plea, they were ordered to be remanded in the custody of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency till Monday, March 14, when the application for their bail would be heard.
The Federal Government, through the NDLEA, arraigned Kyari, four policemen and two civilians on an eight-count charge bordering on conspiracy, obstruction and dealing in cocaine and other related offences.
While Kyari and three other defendants, who are police officers, pleaded not guilty to the entire eight-count charges, the two civilians, Chibuinna Umeibe and Emeka Ezenwanne, pleaded guilty to 5th, 6th and 7th charges where their names featured.
Upon the plea of the defendants, Kyari’s counsel, Kanu Agabi (SAN), along with counsel for other defendants in the charge, prayed the court to admit their clients to bail.
Meanwhile, the trial judge, Justice Emeka Nwite, adjourned till Monday to hear the defendants’ bail applications and ordered that they should be remanded in the custody of the NDLEA.
The judge also fixed March 28 for review of facts in the charges against the two defendants who pleaded guilty.
The judge will also sentence them on the day.
The NDLEA had last week slammed an eight-count hard drug trafficking charge against Kyari.
He was charged with the criminal offences alongside four other senior police officers and two civilians.
The charges marked FHC/ABJ/CR/57/2022 were filed at the Federal High Court in Abuja and signed by the NDLEA Director, Prosecution and Legal Services, Mr Joseph Sunday.
Those charged alongside Abba Kyari are Assistant Commissioner of Police Sunday Ubua, Assistant Superintendent of Police Bawa James, Inspector Simon Agirigba, Inspector John Nuhu, Chibuinna Umeibe and Emeka Ezenwanne.
Kyari, Ubua, James, Agirigba and Nuhu, all of Intelligence Response Team, were said to have between January 19 and 25 dealt in 17. 55 kilogrammes of cocaine and committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 14 (b) of the NDLEA Act, CAP 30 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004. Punch
