A federal high court in Abuja has discharged and acquitted Abba Kyari, suspended deputy commissioner of police, of a 23-count charge of alleged non-declaration of assets filed by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).
In a judgment delivered on Thursday, James Omotosho, presiding judge, held that the prosecution failed to establish its case against Kyari and the other defendants.
Kyari was charged alongside his two brothers, who were accused of swearing false affidavits to conceal the origin of some properties allegedly linked to the police officer.
Delivering the verdict, Omotosho said the NDLEA did not present sufficient evidence to prove that the properties cited in the charge belonged to Kyari.
The judge explained that ownership of landed property can be proven through traditional history, title documents, acts of possession, or possession connected to ownership.
He said none of these forms of proof was presented by the prosecution to show that the property located in Fountain Estate, Kasana (said to belong to Ramatu Kyari), was owned by the suspended police officer.
Omotosho also held that the prosecution failed to produce evidence linking Kyari to other property referenced in the charge, including those located on Linda Choko Road in Asokoro, Abuja, and in Maiduguri, Borno state.
In his defence, Kyari had told the court that the property in Borno belonged to his late father and was inherited by him and his siblings.
The judge said the prosecution did not disprove the claim.
Omotosho also faulted the charge of conspiracy against Kyari’s brothers — Mohammed Kyari and Ali Kyari — holding that the allegation was not substantiated by evidence.
He described the prosecution’s case as weak and lacking in credible proof.
The judge added that Kyari had served the country and should not be subjected to persecution in the absence of convincing evidence.
Meanwhile, Kyari and four other suspended police officers are also facing a separate trial before Emeka Nwite over alleged involvement in a cocaine deal.
Two drug traffickers arrested in the case, Chibunna Patrick Umeibe and Emeka Alphonsus Ezenwanne, were convicted and sentenced to two years in prison in 2022.