Embattled police officer Abba Kyari has denied allegations made by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) that he owns 14 assets including a shopping mall, residential estate, polo playground, lands and farmland.
The suspended deputy commissioner of police stated this in a press release on Monday by his lawyer Hamza Tani.
Kyari was suspended from the Police Force after being alleged to be part of a drug syndicate run by convicted fraudster Ramon Abass aka Hushpuppi. Hushpuppi is currently being held in the US for his crimes.
In the statement by Tani, Kyari said reports in the media about him owning 14 assets were sponsored by the NDLEA to ruin his image.
According to him, the agency resorted to blackmail because “NDLEA’s case in court against Abba Kyari and four others is not going well for them.”
Kyari released the details of the money in his account.
They are N2.8 million in his UBA account, the only account he has been using for the past eight years; 7,000 pounds in GTB kept over eight years ago and N350,000 in GTB kept many years ago.
Others were N200,000 in Sterling Bank and Access Bank account not in use for over eight years.
The statement said, “They expected the court case to go smoothly in their favour the way their sponsored media trials went viral between February and April 2022. They failed to understand that unlike media trials, courts need real evidence and facts which NDLEA don’t have in this case.
“By all means, out of desperation, again, NDLEA wanted to spoil Abba Kyari’s name at all cost because they know that all their initial efforts have failed as overwhelming majority of good Nigerians who want peace and security for the nation are still behind Abba Kyari despite the set-up by NDLEA against Abba Kyari in January 2022, which was followed by massive sponsored media trial earlier this year.
“Again, NDLEA is sponsoring fabricated lies, untrue stories, and flimsy allegations, trumped-up and false charges in court without justification against Abba kyari.”
The statement claimed some property owners in Maiduguri have sued the NDLEA for marking their buildings and claiming they were owned by Kyari.
The lawyer concluded, “We challenge NDLEA to release the evidence to the public immediately if any. The whole thing is only aimed at media trials as they have no evidence to show to the court. If they have the evidence, let them release it to the media.”
