Pass judgement on Emeka Nwite of the Federal Prime Courtroom in Abuja on Friday gave suspended Abba Kyari and 4 different cops dealing with cocaine fees the overall alternative to record their lists of defence witnesses.
The pass judgement on warned that failure to conform may just result in a pressured closure in their defence.
He issued the caution after expressing displeasure over the defendants’ failure to obey his 5 October order directing them to put up the names of witnesses they supposed to name for his or her defence.
Pass judgement on Nwite stated the courtroom’s data confirmed that not one of the defendants had complied with the directive.
“The orders of courtroom will have to be obeyed,” Pass judgement on Nwite stated, caution that he would now not take violations of the courtroom’s orders flippantly.
Mr Kyari, a deputy commissioner of police underneath suspension via police government, is status trial along 4 participants of his now-defunct Police Intelligence Reaction Staff (IRT): Sunday J. Ubua, an assistant commissioner of police; Bawa James, an assistant superintendent of police; Simon Agirgba and John Nuhu, each inspectors.
The Nationwide Drug Regulation Enforcement Company (NDLEA) accused the 5 officials of dealing in 21.35kg of cocaine seized from two traffickers on the Akanu Ibiam World Airport, Enugu, on 19 January 2022.
The prosecution additionally charged them with tampering with the narcotic sustance via putting off 17.55kg from it and changing the portion with every other substance.
The company additionally accused Mr Kyari, in a separate depend, of providing $61,400 to an NDLEA operative to forestall the cocaine from being examined. All 5 denied wrongdoing.
Ultimate alternative
Friday’s ruling adopted a confrontation over whether or not the defence may just query an officer who gave the impression in courtroom with a listing of NDLEA group of workers who had been on responsibility on the Enugu airport when the 2 cocaine smugglers arrived from Ethiopia.
The defence had sought the listing thru a subpoena to reinforce its case to turn the instances underneath which the 2 cocaine traffickers handed thru airport safety sooner than their arrest via Mr Kyari-led IRT on the airport ground.
The subpoena stirred controversy on Wednesday after the prosecution challenged it at the grounds that it used to be addressed to the NDLEA’s director-general, a place the prosecutor stated didn’t exist on the company.
The prosecution, then again, indicated that an officer would produce the asked file, and the case used to be adjourned till the next day to come.
On Thursday, Ojebir Victor, whom the prosecution known as an assistant commander and essential workforce officer in command of group of workers statistics, gave the impression with the listing.
After Mr Victor offered the file and took the witness’ oath, the prosecution and defence disagreed over whether or not an officer subpoenaed to supply the NDLEA airport responsibility roster might be puzzled.
NDLEA’s prosecution legal professional Joseph Sunday argued that the subpoena required the officer handiest to supply the file, to not give oral proof, and that the defence will have to have received a separate subpoena requiring him to testify.
The defence legal professional maintained that the officer might be puzzled to elucidate the file’s contents.
Pass judgement on Nwite reserved his ruling till Friday, 9 October, when he rejected the defence’s place and discharged the officer with out permitting cross-examination.
The defence then asked an adjournment to organize for its case.
Mr Sunday adverse the request, arguing that the officer’s discharge didn’t save you the defendants from calling every other witness. He reminded the courtroom of its previous order directing the defence to record its witness lists.
He additionally advised the pass judgement on to limit the defendants from calling further witnesses and sought prices over the sequence of adjournments.
Ruling, Pass judgement on Nwite rejected the defence’s argument that the instances surrounding an officer who produced a subpoenaed file may just excuse its failure to conform to the order.
The pass judgement on stated the officer’s discharge may just now not have averted the defendants from figuring out their supposed witnesses and submitting their lists of defence witnesses.
He made up our minds to all of the defendants every other alternative to record their lists of defence witnesses, “within the hobby of justice.”
He warned that he may just “foreclose” their defence will have to they fail to conform along with his directive via the following sitting on 12 October.
How the case has advanced
The case started in March 2022, when the NDLEA arraigned Mr Kyari along 4 different cops and two cocaine smugglers on cocaine-related fees.
NDLEA accused them of offences related to 21.35kg of cocaine seized from Chibunna Umeibe and Emeka Ezenwanne, the 2 suspected traffickers who smuggled the substance into the rustic throughout the Akanu Ibiam World Airport, Enugu, in January 2022.
The cops, together with Mr Kyari, allegedly tampered with the cocaine after seizing it from the 2 smugglers who arrived Nigeria from Ethiopia via taking 17.55kg from it and changing that portion with a look-alike substance.
Some of the fees directed only at Mr Kyari accused him of providing $61,400 to a senior anti-narcotics operative to forestall the trying out the cocaine to discover the adulteration.
Whilst Mr Kyari and the 4 officials pleaded now not responsible, Mr Umeibe and Mr Ezenwanne admitted the costs. They had been convicted and sentenced to 2 years’ imprisonment each and every, phrases they’ve since finished.
The prosecution opened its case towards the 5 officials in July 2022, just about two months after their arraignment. The NDLEA known as 16 prosecution witnesses and tendered about 52 digital and documentary reveals.
One prosecution witness, Peter Joshua, an operative of the NDLEA, testified that Mr Kyari introduced him $61,400 after he weighed and performed initial checks at the cocaine.
Every other prosecution witness, Mohammed Ajia, testified in October 2022 that forensic examinations discovered that 80 in keeping with cent of the substance examined sure for cocaine, whilst the remainder 20 in keeping with cent used to be every other substance.
The prosecution closed its case in July 2024.
In April 2025, Pass judgement on Nwite rejected the defendants’ no-case submission, ruling that they’d instances to respond to and directing them to give their defence.
Mr Kyari opened his defence in July 2025, calling Adeshina Fasasi, a crew lead with MTN’s incident control unit, as his first witness.
Subpoenaed at Mr Kyari’s request, Mr Fasasi testified about name information data related to the suspended police officer.
He advised the courtroom that the data didn’t determine touch between Mr Kyari and a phone quantity related to a suspected cocaine trafficker referred to as Mike Coke. He additionally testified that the quantity stored underneath the identify “Coke” used to be registered to Ruth Ayuba, now not Mr Kyari.
Mr Fasasi defined that MTN’s name information data didn’t include the content material of phone conversations, WhatsApp messages or names stored in customers’ telephone contacts. All through cross-examination, he said that he used to be indirectly hired via MTN Nigeria and had now not learn the overall file tendered sooner than the courtroom.
READ ALSO: Court dismisses Abba Kyari’s witness, strikes out evidence in cocaine trial
Defence proof hits a setback
The second one defence witness, El-John Nwonke, a police inspector, began taking the witness stand in January 2026, attesting that he used to be a part of the police crew that interviewed convicted Mr Umeibe and Mr Ezenwanne following their arrest on the Enugu airport in January 2022.
Mr Nwonke advised the courtroom that the 2 males had confessed all through the interview that NDLEA officials at Enugu airport helped them move thru safety exams sooner than they had been arrested with the suspected cocaine.
The interview used to be recorded on a virtual video disc. The courtroom admitted the disc in proof as Showcase D-3 on 28 February and the defence performed the video recording in open courtroom on 16 March. Within the recording, the 2 males alleged that NDLEA officials helped them evade airport safety.
Mr Nwonke’s testimony, then again, didn’t achieve cross-examination after he again and again failed to wait courtroom.
On 29 September, the defence legal professional sought an adjournment, explaining that the witness used to be out of doors Nigeria on an legitimate project. When he failed to look once more, the defence submitted a letter looking for extra time at the grounds that he used to be sick.
The prosecution adverse every other adjournment and requested the courtroom to near the witness’s proof. Pass judgement on Nwite reluctantly granted extra time however warned that the testimony could be foreclosed will have to the witness fail to look.
Mr Nwonke used to be absent once more on 7 October, prompting the prosecution to resume its request for the pressured closure of the witness’ proof. The pass judgement on granted the request, “foreclosing” the police inspector’s testimony and striking out his evidence. The pass judgement on stated the witness were given enough time to testify and put up to cross-examination.
Because of this, the prosecution didn’t cross-examine Mr Nwonke on his testimony.
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