Court Acquits DCP Abba Kyari in NDLEA Asset Declaration Case

A Federal High Court in Abuja has discharged and acquitted suspended Deputy Commissioner of Police, Abba Kyari, of a 23-count charge bordering on alleged non-declaration of assets brought against him by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).

Delivering judgment on Thursday, Justice James Omotosho ruled that the prosecution failed to establish its case against Kyari and the other defendants.

Kyari was charged alongside his brothers, Mohammed Kyari and Ali Kyari, who were accused of swearing false affidavits to conceal the origin and ownership of several properties allegedly linked to the police officer.

In his ruling, Justice Omotosho held that the NDLEA did not present sufficient evidence to prove that the assets listed in the charges belonged to Kyari.

The anti-narcotics agency had filed the 23-count charge in 2022, alleging that Kyari failed to declare 14 assets. These included shopping malls, a residential estate, a polo playground, parcels of land, and farmland located in Abuja and Maiduguri.

The agency also alleged that more than ₦207 million and €17,598 held in accounts with Guaranty Trust Bank, United Bank for Africa, and Sterling Bank were connected to the undisclosed assets.

According to the NDLEA, the alleged offences violated provisions of the NDLEA Act and the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2011, accusing the defendants of disguising property ownership and converting funds.

Kyari was granted a bail of ₦50 million in July 2023 after the court ruled that the charges were bailable.

During the trial, the prosecution presented 10 witnesses and tendered 20 exhibits, including property documents and bank records. Kyari, however, denied ownership of the assets, insisting that the properties were inherited from his late father and shared among about 30 siblings.

In October 2025, the court dismissed Kyari’s no-case submission and ordered him to open his defence. However, in the final judgment delivered on Thursday, the court ruled that the prosecution had not proven its case beyond reasonable doubt, leading to his acquittal.