The Federal High Court in Abuja has ruled in favour of suspended police officer Abba Kyari in the asset declaration case brought against him by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).
The judgment, delivered on Wednesday by James Omotosho, dismissed the allegations that Kyari failed to properly declare certain properties linked to him and members of his family.
The case was filed by the NDLEA in 2022. It contained 23 counts against Kyari and two of his brothers, Mohammed Kyari and Ali Kyari. Prosecutors accused them of failing to make full disclosure of assets as required by law.
During the trial, the anti-drug agency argued that three houses located in the EFAB Metropolitan Estate in Abuja belonged to the former head of the Police Intelligence Response Team (IRT). According to the prosecution, the properties were not properly declared.
However, the court disagreed with the claim.
In a detailed judgment that ran for nearly three hours, Justice Omotosho said the prosecution could not prove its case beyond reasonable doubt. The judge held that the NDLEA failed to establish that the three houses actually belonged to Kyari.
The court noted that Kyari had listed the properties in his asset declaration but indicated that they belonged to his wife. Justice Omotosho ruled that the declaration was not false and that the evidence presented by the prosecution was insufficient to support the charges.
While delivering the judgment, the judge criticised the manner the case was handled by the NDLEA. He said the agency appeared to have acted “too hasty” and described the prosecution as an act of “persecution”.
Based on these findings, the court cleared Kyari and his brothers of all the charges contained in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CR/408/2022.
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