The fourth prosecution witness called by the NDLEA testified at the Federal High Court in Abuja in the ongoing cocaïne trafficking trial of Abba Kyari and his co-defendants.
A prosecution witness in the cocaine trafficking trial of Abba Kyari has told the Federal High Court in Abuja that the cocaine substance seized from two traffickers linked to the suspended police officer was adulterated.
The NDLEA had previously accused Mr Kyari, a suspended deputy commissioner of police, and his four co-defendants of adulterating the cocaine after seizing it from the two traffickers that smuggled it into the country through the Enugu airport in January.
Eighty per cent or four-fifth of the substance tested cocaine, while the remaining 20 per cent or one-fifth was another substance, said Mohammed Ajia, a commander of the Nigerian Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).
Mr Ajia, the fourth prosecution witnessed in evidence by NDLEA’s lawyer, Sunday Joseph, said the unnamed other substance was used to adulterate the cocaine.
“After the substances were subjected to a test, the results tested 80 per cent positive to cocaïne, while in others, there were traces of cocaine in them, which suggests that the substance must have been adulterated with another substance,” the fourth prosecution witness called by the NDLEA told the court.
Mr Ajia’s testimony was a pointer to some of the pending charges in court where the NDLEA accused Mr Kyari and his four other police officers in his Intelligence Response Team (IRT) members of tampering with the 21.35 kilogramames of the cocaine seized from two men arrested at Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, on 19 January this year.
The anti-narcoric agency alleged that Mr Kyari and his team members removed and disposed 17.55 kilogrammes of the cocaine and then, substituted same with some other substance.
It also accused Mr Kyari of attempting to obstruct the NDLEA and its authorised officers by offering $61,400 to a senior officer of the agency as inducement at a restaurant on Port Harcourt Crescent, Area 11, Garki Abuja.
The motive, according to the charges, was to prevent “the testing of the 17.55kilogrammes of substance used to replace the cocaine seized from Chibunna Patrick Umeibe and Emeka Alphonsus Ezenwanne.”
The offences allegedly committed by Mr Kyari and his co-defendants between 19 and 25 January are said to be contrary to and punishable under various provisions of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act.
The four police officers with whom Mr Kyari is now facing the charges are Sunday Ubua, an assistant commissioner of police; Bawa James, an assistant superintendent of police; Simon Agirgba, an inspector, and John Nuhu, also an inspector.
The two persons from whom the cocaine was seized – Chibuna Umeibe and Emeka Ezenwanne – had since pleaded guilty to the part of the drug trafficking charges concerning them.
The court jailed the self-confessed cocaïne traffickers two years each in June, following their guilty plea.
Witness confirms NDLEA officers failed to arrest traffickers at airport
Meanwhile, Mr Ajia said under cross-examination by Mr Kyari’s lawyer that NDLEA officers failed to arrest the convicted drugs traffickers when they passed through the airport in Enugu on 19 January.
The Mr Kyari-led team arrested the two men.
Mr Ajia confirmed earlier in his evidence-in-chief that the anti-narcotics agency took custody of the two drugs traffickers and “some powdry substances” they were apprehended with on 4 February.
Following the no-objection response Mr Kyari’s lawyer, Onyechi Ikpeazu, and other defence lawyers, the “transfer letter” by the IRT handing over the two culprits to the NDLEA was admitted as Exhibit 13 at Wednesday’s proceedings.
Mr Ajia admitted that the anti-narcotics agency has its officers at all airports across Nigeria.
“The Airport in Enugu is one of such international airports,” Mr Ajia said.
In response to another cross-examination question thrown at him by the defence by Mr Kyari’s lawyer, Mr Ajia said he was not aware if any NDLEA personnel at the Enugu airport had been arrested and prosecuted for failing in their duty to arrest the two culprits while smuggling the cocaine from Ethiopia into the country,.
Abba Kyari files application to block convicted trafficker’s testimony
Meanwhile, Mr Kyari has filed an application seeking to stop Messrs Umeibe and Ezenwanne from testifying against him the suit.
The court could not hear the application on Wednesday because request because the court’s copy could not be found in the judge’s file.
The suit was adjourned until October 20 for continuation of trial.
Mr Kyari was suspendedlast year by police authorities after he was charged in the United States over his alleged link to an internet fraud involving Abbas Ramon, aka Hushpuppi.
But another federal judge, Inyang Ekwo, in Abuja, has dismissed Nigeria’s Attorney-General’s request to extradite Mr Kyari’s to the US.
The judge ruled that the extradition forbids the extradition of a person on trial in Nigeria to à foreign country.