KEY POINTS

• A Federal High Court in Abuja has discharged and acquitted suspended Deputy Commissioner of Police Abba Kyari of a 23-count charge of alleged asset non-declaration.

• The court ruled that the NDLEA failed to provide credible evidence linking Kyari to the properties cited in the case.

• Kyari, however, is still facing a separate trial alongside other police officers over alleged involvement in a cocaine deal.

A Federal High Court in Abuja has discharged and acquitted suspended Deputy Commissioner of Police Abba Kyari of a 23-count charge bordering on alleged non-declaration of assets.

Justice James Omotosho, who delivered the judgment on Thursday, ruled that the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency failed to establish the case against Kyari and the other defendants.

Kyari had been arraigned by the anti-drug agency alongside his two brothers, Mohammed Kyari and Ali Kyari, who were accused of swearing false affidavits in an attempt to conceal the origin of certain properties allegedly linked to the police officer.

In his ruling, the judge said the prosecution did not provide sufficient evidence to prove that the properties listed in the charges actually belonged to Kyari.

Omotosho explained that ownership of landed property can be proven through several means, including traditional history, title documents, acts of possession or evidence connecting possession to ownership.

According to him, none of these forms of proof were presented by the prosecution to establish that the property located at Fountain Estate in Kasana, which was said to belong to Ramatu Kyari, was owned by the suspended police officer.

The judge also said the prosecution failed to link Kyari to other properties mentioned in the charge, including those located on Linda Choko Road in Asokoro, Abuja, as well as another property in Maiduguri, Borno State.

Court accepts defence explanation on property ownership

During the trial, he told the court that the property located in Borno State belonged to his late father and was inherited by him and his siblings.

The judge held that the prosecution did not present any evidence to disprove the claim made by the defendant.

Omotosho also dismissed the allegation of conspiracy brought against Kyari’s brothers, ruling that the charge was not supported by credible evidence.

He described the case presented by the prosecution as weak and lacking in convincing proof.

The judge further remarked that Kyari had served the country and should not be subjected to persecution in the absence of solid evidence.