A US District Court for the Central District of California has rescheduled the trial of a suspended deputy police commissioner in Nigeria Abba Kyari, and five others for alleged $1.1 million fraud coordinated by convicted fraudster Ramon Abbas aka Hushpuppi.
Based on a joint request by the prosecution and three of Kyari’s co-defendants, the court rescheduled the trial from May 2022 to October 2022.
This comes amid difficulties in extraditing Kyari as he also faces drug trafficking charges at a Federal High Court in Abuja.
Kyari’s co-defendants in the alleged fraud trial in the US had last year applied for postponement of the trial to give the defence lawyers of three of the defendants more time to prepare for the case.
Ruling on March 29, 2022, Justice Otis Wright said it “would unreasonably deny defendant continuity of counsel” and could make “proceeding impossible or result in a miscarriage of justice” if the court rejected the postponement request, reports Premium Times.
The three co-defendants – Rukayat Fashola (aka Morayo), Bolatito Agbabiaka (aka Bolamide), and Yusuf Anifowoshe (aka AJ and Alvin Johnson) – have been released from custody on bail ahead of trial.
The others which the prosecution says are at large are Kyari, Abdulrahman Juma, and Kelly Chibuzo Vincent.
