The Federal High Court in Abuja has rejected the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency’s (NDLEA) request to foreclose the evidence of the second defence witness, Inspector John Nwoke, in the ongoing cocaine trial involving suspended DCP Abba Kyari and four other police officers.
Justice Emeka Nwite, in a ruling on Monday, adjourned the case until October 7 for Nwoke to continue his testimony and face cross-examination, warning that failure to appear on the next date would lead to the closure of his evidence.
The NDLEA had urged the court to foreclose the witness after Nwoke failed to appear for cross-examination, citing ill-health.
The agency argued that the medical letter presented by the defence did not adequately explain the nature of his illness or justify another adjournment.
The prosecution also alleged that the defence was disregarding an earlier directive requiring Nwoke to appear in court, warning that continued absence could frustrate the criminal proceedings.
Defence counsel Julius Mba, however, said Nwoke had notified the court of his illness and that the defence was ready to proceed once the witness recovered.
MUST READ:Court discharges and acquits suspended DSP Abba Kyari
He also informed the court that the defence had obtained a subpoena requiring the NDLEA to produce records of its personnel who were on duty at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, on January 19, 2022.
Kyari and the other police officers are facing trial over allegations that they tampered with cocaine recovered from two convicted drug traffickers at the Enugu airport. They have pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The two drug traffickers, Chibunna Umeibe and Emeka Ezenwanne, had earlier pleaded guilty to the charges against them.
(Follow AIT News on WhatsApp, AfricaIndependentTV on YouTube, ait_online on Facebook and X (Formerly Twitter), and officialait on TikTok, Instagram and Threads)
(Editor: Ebuwa Omo-Osagie)
