Following investigations on a 25kg cocaine found on some suspects, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, has declared wanted the suspended Commander of Intelligence Response Team (IRT) at the Force Intelligence Bureau of the Nigerian Police Force, DCP Abba Kyari.

The NDLEA disclosed that from its findings, Kyari is a member of a drug cartel that operates the Brazil-Ethiopia-Nigeria illicit drug pipeline and needed to be quizzed about an ongoing drug case whereby he is the principal actor. 

The Director of Media and Advocacy, NDLEA, Femi Babafemi made this known in Abuja on Monday during a press briefing.

Babafemi stressed that formal invitations had been sent by the agency for his interrogation but none was honoured, hence the press briefing to publicly declare him wanted.

Speaking on the illicit drug scandal under investigation, the anti-narcortic agency explained that Abba Kyari’s team had nabbed some drug traffickers in Enugu that came into the country from Ethiopia with 25kg of cocaine. 

“He (Kyari) proposed a drug deal whereby he and his team are to take 15kg of the cocaine and leave 10kg for the prosecution of the suspects arrested with the illicit drug in Enugu. In the meantime, the purloined cocaine will be replaced with a dummy worth 15kg. He asked the NDLEA officer to persuade men of the FCT Command, to play along as well.

“By 11:05 am on Monday, January 24, after the Agency gave the officer the green light to play along, he and Kyari began a WhatsApp call for the rest of the day. The officer conveyed their willingness to play the game.

“At this point, Kyari disclosed that the 15kg (already taken out) was shared between the informants that provided information for the seizure and himself and his men of the IRT of the Nigerian Police. According to him, the informants were given 7kg while his team took 8kg which was already sold. He then offered to pay the NDLEA team (that is the officer and the FCT commander) by selling, on their behalf, half of the remaining 10kg, thereby further reducing the original cocaine for the prosecution to just 5kg. At N7m per kilogram, the proceed from the 5kg would amount to N35m, at the exchange rate of N570 per dollar being the black market rate for the day, January 24, 2022. In effect, he would be delivering $61, 400 to the NDLEA team. He put pressure on our officer to wrap up the arrangement with the commander of the FCT Command to take custody of the drug and suspects from his men who were on ground in Abuja. At the time, he was speaking from Lagos, where he allegedly travelled for private business.

Investors King learnt that the NDLEA officer contacted had sound and video recorders around on the day they met, unknown to Kyari which aided the agency’s investigations.

“Kyari was in Abuja and met with the officer at the same rendezvous where they had the first meeting. He disclosed how his team received the information from a double-crosser who betrayed the traffickers to him, showing a sordid connection between law enforcement agents and the drug underworld; he narrated how acting on the tip-off, his team departed Abuja to Enugu and arrested the traffickers, removed part of the consignment on his instruction and replaced same with dummies. He also indicated how to identify the remnant of the original cocaine that would be delivered to NDLEA, five original packages marked with red dots. The reason for this was to avoid the dummies being subjected to test. He forwarded a picture of the marked original cocaine package. According to the plan, once the 5kg cocaine has been tested in the presence of the suspects and confirmed positive, there would be no need to test the remaining ones, being dummies.

“He also brought with him the money from the sale of the 5kg share of the NDLEA team, a total of $61, 400. Our officer, however, preferred to take the money inside his car. Well, the car was wired with sound and video recorders,” the agency revealed.

Investors King reports that the NDLEA is saddled with the responsibility of taking in custody suspects and consignments of drugs seized by other arms of law enforcement and there is a standard protocol for such transfer. 

The Media director noted that the agency received the suspects and the drugs on February 8 but yet to complete the process, which is the debriefing of Kyari.

He added that the delay of the suspended DCP will no longer be tolerated as it will infringe the right of the suspects in their custody who must not be kept indefinitely.

Babafemi, however, stated that the agency is aware of threats to the lives of its officers involved in the case and will properly protect its officers.

“We are making this strong statement to those contemplating harmful action against NDLEA officers. They would only succeed in compounding their problems in the event of the murder of or harm to officers and men of NDLEA,” he said.