Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja, yesterday, dismissed a fresh bail application by the detained Deputy Commissioner of Police, Abba Kyari.
At yesterday’s proceedings, the presiding judge ruled that Kyari’s application lacked merit.
He held that Kyari failed to establish any exceptional circumstance that should warrant the exercise of judicial discretion in his favour.
The trial judge said the court had earlier dismissed a similar bail application that was brought before it and ordered an accelerated hearing of the case.
He said no evidence was shown to convince the court why it should depart from its earlier ruling.
The court had, in two previous rulings, denied the defendants bail and ordered their remand at Kuje Prison.
The Court of Appeal in Abuja also refused Kyari’s request for bail.
Justice Nwite, after rejecting Kyari’s application, sanctioned the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) to proceed with the prosecution of Kyari and his co-defendants.
Kyari is facing eight charges bordering on drug trafficking brought against him by the anti-narcotic agency.
It alleged that Kyari and his men, sometime between January 19 and 25, 2022, at the office of Inspector-General of Police, IRT, Abuja, in connivance with one ASP John Umoru (now at large), ACP Sunday J. Ubia, ASP Bawa James, Inspector Simon Agirigba and Inspector John Nuhu, unlawfully tampered with 21.25 kilogrammes worth of cocaine that they seized from the two convicted drug traffickers – Chibunna Patrick Umeibe and Emeka Alphonsus Ezenwane – even as it also accused them of dealing in cocaine worth 17.55 kilogrammes.
The charge, according to the plaintiff, is contrary to Section 14(b) of the NDLEA Act, CAP N30 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.
Recall however that the court last month granted Kyari temporary bail from prison custody to enable him to participate in his mother’s final burial rites.
The court granted him bail in the sum of N50 million for two weeks and two sureties in like sum.
Previously, Kyari had applied to challenge the charge brought against him, which the court dismissed on March 22, 2023.
The top cop, through his team of lawyers, led by Mr. Nureni Jimoh (SAN), had argued that the charge was legally defective and premature.
He added that the NDLEA ought to have allowed the police to exhaust its internal machinery before filing the applications in court.
The defendant claimed that the police had already commenced an investigation of the allegations against him and issued an interim report.
He contended that he could only be charged in court upon the conclusion of the internal investigation by the police.
