The Court of Appeal in Abuja has dismissed an appeal by the suspended Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), Abba Kyari, who sought to have the charges against him in an alleged drug deal quashed.
The appeal, marked CA/ABJ/CR/516/2023, was deemed unmeritorious by a three-member panel of the appellate court on Thursday, July 18.
In the lead judgment, Justice Adebukola Banjoko upheld the findings and conclusions of Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court, who, on March 22, 2023, ruled against quashing the charges.
Justice Banjoko stated, “In conclusion, this court finds no reason to disturb the findings and conclusions reached by the learned trial judge of the Federal High Court, and the ruling delivered on the 22nd day of March 2023 is affirmed.”
The panel, including Justices Peter Obiora and Okon Abang, concurred with the lead judgment, directing that the trial at the Federal High Court proceed to conclusion.
Kyari’s appeal contested the March 22 ruling by Justice Nwite, which dismissed Kyari’s application challenging the court’s jurisdiction. Kyari had argued that he and four other serving police officers had not been subjected to the internal disciplinary mechanisms of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) before the charges were brought.
Justice Nwite, however, asserted the exclusive right and jurisdiction of the Federal High Court to hear drug-related cases, as stipulated in the Constitution and the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) Act.
He emphasized that the powers of the Police Service Commission (PSC) do not supersede those of the Federal High Court.
Abba Kyari, the former head of the Intelligence Response Team (IRT) of the Nigeria Police Force, is being prosecuted by the NDLEA.
He, along with four IRT members—ACP Sunday J. Ubua, ASP Bawa James, Inspector Simon Agirgba, and Inspector John Nuhu—is charged with conspiracy to deal in 17.55kg of cocaine.
They are also accused of dealing in cocaine without lawful authority, conspiracy to tamper with cocaine, and unlawfully tampering with 21.35kg of cocaine seized from two convicted drug dealers.
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