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Drug Trafficking : NDLEA Declares Abba Kyari Wanted

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Suspended Deputy Police Commissioner Abba Kyari
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The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has declared suspended Deputy Commissioner of Police, Abba Kyari, wanted over alleged links with drug trafficking.

NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi made the announcement during a press conference in Abuja on Monday.

Before his suspension over links with convicted fraudster Hushpuppi, Mr Kyari was the Commander of Intelligence Response Team (IRT) at the Force Intelligence Bureau of the Nigerian Police Force.

According to the NDLEA, he is wanted over his involvement in a 25 kilograms Cocaine deal.

The Agency said it declared Mr Kyari wanted after all efforts to get him to honour formal invitations for his interrogation failed.

It bemoaned a situation where those who are supposed to support current efforts to stem the tide of illicit drug trafficking and abuse are themselves neck deep in the menace.

“There is no better way to start this press briefing than to remind us about the enormity of the drug problem Nigeria has on its hand and the imperative of all well-meaning Nigerians to play a positive role in curbing the illicit drug menace,” Mr Babafemi said on Monday.

“Even before the damning findings of the 2018 National Drug Use and Health Survey, Nigeria’s drug problem was getting close to epidemic proportion.

And if anything, the arrests and seizures by NDLEA in the past 12 months is an indication that the country’s drug problem was grossly underestimated before President Muhammadu Buhari’s resolve to strengthen the NDLEA and the subsequent launch of offensive action by the Agency to clean the society of the menace.

“And in just 12 months, even the most cynical of Nigerians now agree that the country is really in a drug quagmire and therefore appreciates the relentless efforts of NDLEA operatives.

“Unfortunately, some law enforcement agents who should be partners in the pursuit of the President’s mandate are at the forefront of breaking the law, as they aid and abet drug trafficking in the country.

“Today, we are forced to declare one of such law enforcement agents wanted in the person of suspended DCP Abba Kyari, the erstwhile Commander of Intelligence Response Team (IRT) at the Force Intelligence Bureau of the Nigerian Police Force.

“With the intelligence at our disposal, the Agency believes strongly that DCP Kyari is a member of a drug cartel that operates the Brazil-Ethiopia-Nigeria illicit drug pipeline, and he needs to answer questions that crop up in an ongoing drug case in which he is the principal actor. His failure to cooperate forced the hand of the Agency and that is the reason for this press briefing.”

The drug deal

According to the NDLEA, Kyari had initiated a call to one of its officers on Friday, January 21, 2022.
“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,” Mr Babafemi said.

“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.

“By 11: 05 am on Monday, January 24, after the Agency gave the officer the green light to play along, he and Kyari began a WhatsApp call for the rest of the day.

The officer conveyed “their” willingness to play the game.

“At this point, Kyari disclosed that the 15kg (already taken out) was shared between the informants that provided information for the seizure and himself and his men of the IRT of the Nigerian Police. According to him, the informants were given 7kg while his team took 8kg which was already sold.

“He then offered to pay the NDLEA team (that is the officer and the FCT commander) by selling, on their behalf, half of the remaining 10kg, thereby further reducing the original cocaine for the prosecution to just 5kg.

At N7m per kilogram, the proceed from the 5kg would amount to N35m, at the exchange rate of N570 per dollar being the black market rate for the day, January 24, 2022. In effect, he would be delivering $61, 400 to the NDLEA team.

He put pressure on our officer to wrap up the arrangement with the commander of the FCT Command to take custody of the drug and suspects from his men who were on ground in Abuja. At the time, he was speaking from Lagos, where he allegedly travelled for private business.

“The next day January 25, Kyari offered to send his younger brother to deliver the payment while his men deliver the suspects, but our officer turned down the suggestion, insisting he would rather deal with him in person and was therefore prepared to wait for him to return from Lagos.

“And by 5: 23 pm, Kyari was in Abuja and met with the officer at the same rendezvous where they had the first meeting.

In their discussion, he disclosed how his team received the information from a double-crosser who betrayed the traffickers to him, showing a sordid connection between law enforcement agents and the drug underworld; he narrated how acting on the tip-off, his team departed Abuja to Enugu and arrested the traffickers, removed part of the consignment on his instruction and replaced same with dummies.

He also indicated how to identify the remnant of the original cocaine that would be delivered to NDLEA, five original packages marked with red dots.

The reason for this was to avoid the dummies being subjected to test. He forwarded a picture of the marked original cocaine package.

According to the plan, once the 5kg cocaine has been tested in the presence of the suspects and confirmed positive, there would be no need to test the remaining ones, being dummies.

“He also brought with him the money from the sale of the 5kg share of the NDLEA team, a total of $61, 400. Our officer, however, preferred to take the money inside his car.

Well, the car was wired with sound and video recorders.

While explaining that relevant channels of communication were duly followed in the demand for Kyari without any result, the NDLEA said it cannot continue to keep other suspects in the case indefinitely while the principal suspect fails to honour official invitation.

“NDLEA has the mandate to take custody of suspects and consignments of drugs seized by other arms of law enforcement,” Mr Babafemi said. “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.

“DCP Abba Kyari was invited by NDLEA for debriefing on Thursday February 10 through two main channels because there is 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 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 honour the official invitation, NDLEA has no option but to declare DCP Abba Kyari of the Nigerian Police WANTED, right from this very moment.

The NDLEA said that it’s not unaware of threats to the lives of its officers involved in the case, assuring that it would do everything to protect its officers.

“We are not unaware of threats to the lives of NDLEA officers involved in this investigation, even as we continue to do our best to protect our officers and men in the line of duty.

“We are making this strong statement to those contemplating harmful action against NDLEA officers.

They would only succeed in compounding their problems in the event of the murder of or harm to officers and men of NDLEA.”

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Crime

EFCC Arrests Woman For Spraying Naira At Party

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The operatives of the Gombe Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have arrested a young woman, Janty Emmanuel, for allegedly abusing the naira.

EFCC spokesman Dele Oyewale disclosed this via a statement issued on Tuesday, May 21, 2024.

Oyewale said the woman was arrested on Monday, May 20, following intelligence that spotted her spraying naira notes at a social event in Gombe State.

Court jails varsity student for internet fraud

He noted: “Upon arrest, the suspect was shown the video where she was dancing at G-Connect, Tumfure, Gombe State, and spraying N1,000 denomination of the naira notes.

“She admitted committing the crime and shall be charged to court as soon as investigation is concluded.”

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Crime

Police Vow To Apprehend Ekiti Robbery Perpetrators

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The Ekiti State Police Command has vowed to arrest the perpetrators of a bank robbery in the Ikere-Ekiti area of the State.

Robbers had attacked two new-generation banks in Ikere-Ekiti on Wednesday evening, carting away an undisclosed amount of money with three persons feared killed.

In a statement after the incidents, the police spokesman in the state, Abutu Sunday, said the Commissioner of Police, CP Ogundare Dare, visited the scene of the robbery incidents at Ikere-Ekiti for an on-the-spot assessment.

“The Commissioner, who expressed his displeasure over the ugly incident, directed the Ikere Area Commander and all the Tactical Teams within the Command to ensure the perpetrators are trailed, arrested, and brought to book,” the statement partly read.

The police spokesperson said tactical squads and soldiers deployed to the scene engaged the hoodlums who abandoned the three vehicles and two motorcycles before they fled to the bush.

The police enjoined anyone with useful information concerning the identities and whereabouts of hoodlums to contact the police.

The commissioner commiserated with the family members of those who were fatally affected and wished those currently receiving treatment in the hospital a quick recovery.

CP Dare called for calm and implored everyone to go about their lawful businesses as the Command will not rest until the hoodlums are made to face the full wrath of the law.

 

 

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Africa News

Memo Ordering Withdrawal Of Police From VIPs, Fake – Police Sources

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Stories making the rounds in Some online  media outlets about a purported memo with the order for the withdrawal of Mobile Police personnel from the very important personality (VIPs) has been described to be fake by  a retired police Commissioner who was very conversant with the workings of the Police Mobile Force.

Reacting to the purported Memo  retired Police Mobile Squadron Commander, CP Mike Ademola  who is conversant with signals and memos of the PMF having led the Mobile police before retirement,  said it didn’t come from the police authority as and therefore, it is fake.

CP Ademola rtd explained that the wordings of the memo shows that it is fake as police signal does not appear without proper identification and directions but from the memo, you would notice that some persons were not properly identified and this is a sign of fake news.

He also commended the acting IGP, Olukayode Egbetokun for having the courage to initiate policies that would reform the Nigeria Mobile Police in order for the PMF to regain the lost glory.

He said, with the initiative like this, the IGP has set the police ready for a better future.

Also, the Force PRO, CSP Olumuyiwa Adejobi when contacted to react to the memo, said the Force management team is currently having their meetings now where critical decisions will be taken.

Meanwhile, our checks showed that no mobile squadron commander has withdrawn their personnel from the people mentioned in the memo as at Monday.

Part of the memo had named important personalities like former secretary to the government of the federation, Boss Mustapha, former governor of Ogun State, Gbenga Daniel, former Zamfara State governor, Matawalle among others as people whose police were withdrawn.

Recall that when the acting inspector-general of police, IGP Olukayode Egbetokun resumed duty as the police boss, he had stated that he would effect the withdrawal of Police Mobile Force personnel from VIP escort/guard duties.

This was even as he established the Special Intervention Squad which according to him would have 40,000 highly trained police officers including selected officers from the Police Mobile Force.

He had explained that this action was to allow the mobile police take back its place in the internal security architecture of the country and reclaim its lost glory.

According to him, “In a bid to kick-start the process of regaining our pride of place in the internal security architecture of our dear country first and foremost, modalities for the creation of a new special squad – the Special Intervention Squad have been initiated.

“This special squad shall consist of 40,000 specially trained elite officers. The Squad will be formed by selecting officers from the pool of existing Police Mobile Force personnel and all tactical units in the country.

“These officers will undergo an intensive pre-deployment training to make them combat-ready for frontline operational duties in all the states of the Federation, with a particular focus on areas plagued with unrest and turmoil.

“By pooling together the expertise and experience of our PMF personnel and other tactical units, we can establish a formidable force that is well-equipped to handle the evolving challenges we face.”

The IGP also said the establishment of the squad would help the police to promptly respond to security threats, noting that 1000 personnel would be deployed to every state.

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