NDLEA declares Abba Kyari a wanted man over his links with an international drug cartel

NIGERIA'S National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has declared Deputy Police Commissioner Abba Kyari a wanted man over his alleged links with an international drug cartel.

In court documents released by the United States Department of Justice in August last year, Mr Kyari was said to have been bribed by Nigerian Instagram celebrity Ramon Abbas, popularly known as Hushpuppi. Apparently, he was bribed to arrest one Kelly Chibuzor Vincent, 40, in Nigeria who had an altercation with Hushpuppi.

Titled Six Indicted in International Scheme to Defraud Qatari School Founder and then Launder over $1m in Illicit Proceeds, the indictment accused Hushpuppi of creating bogus documents and arranging for the creation of a fake bank website and phone banking line to support the defrauding of a business person trying to provide $1.1m for the funding of a school in Qatar. Mr Kyari, who is accused of being complicit in these crimes, has since been suspended from duty while an investigation into what took place was conducted.

While Hushpuppi pleaded guilty, Mr Kyari has denied any wrongdoing but the US and Nigerian governments are said to be discussing his extradition. In a sure sign that Mt Kyari is likely to be arrested and extradited to the US, the NDLEA has declared him wanted for aiding and abetting drug pushing.

NDLEA spokesman Femi Babafemi, said Mr Kyari is a member of a drug cartel that operates the Brazil-Ethiopia-Nigeria illicit drug pipeline, so he needs to answer questions that cropped up in an ongoing drug case in which he is the principal actor. In addition, the agency said that Mr Kyari had refused to cooperate with them, hence the reason for their declaration.

Up until his suspension over the Hushpuppi scandal, Mr Kyari, was the officer-in-charge of the Nigeria Police Force's Intelligence Response Team. FBI special agent, Andrew Innocenti, had alleged that Hushpuppi contracted the services of Kyari after Mr Vincent, a co-conspirator, threatened to expose the alleged $1.1m fraud committed against a Qatari businessman.

Mr Innocenti, who said he obtained voice calls and WhatsApp conversations between Messrs  Kyari and Hushpuppi, also alleged that the latter paid the police officer N8m or $20,600 for the arrest and detention of Mr Vincent. In July last year, the United States Attorney’s Office at the Central District of California ordered the FBI to arrest Mr Kyari.