Federal High Court in Abuja has struck out the evidence of the second defence witness in the alleged cocaine trafficking trial involving suspended Deputy Commissioner of Police, Abba Kyari, and four other police officers.
Gatekeepers News reports that Justice Emeka Nwite struck out the evidence of Inspector John Nwonke on Wednesday after the witness failed to appear in court for the continuation of his testimony despite an earlier warning that his evidence would be foreclosed if he remained absent.
The ruling followed an oral application by Joseph Sunday, counsel for the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), who told the court that Nwonke had repeatedly failed to appear for cross-examination.
The judge held that the witness had been given sufficient time and opportunity to present his evidence and face cross-examination by the prosecution but failed to utilise the opportunity.
Nwonke had earlier cited ill-health as the reason for his absence. However, the prosecution challenged the explanation, arguing that a letter purportedly sent by the witness did not state the nature of his illness or identify the hospital where he was receiving treatment.
On Monday, Justice Nwite had warned that Nwonke’s evidence would be foreclosed if he failed to appear in court on Wednesday.
When the case was called on Wednesday, however, the witness was absent, prompting the prosecution to renew its request that his evidence be struck out.
Julius Mba, counsel to Kyari and Inspector Simon Agirgba, told the court that Nwonke was a subpoenaed witness and might not have been aware that the case had been scheduled for Wednesday.
The court nevertheless ordered that his evidence be removed from the record.
Nwonke began giving evidence in January and had testified about police investigations into the two drug traffickers whose arrest forms part of the case against Kyari and the other officers. His testimony was also expected to support the defence’s position concerning the circumstances surrounding the arrest of the suspects at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, in January 2022.
NDLEA has accused Kyari and the other officers of tampering with cocaine recovered from two drug traffickers arrested at the airport.
Kyari and the other police defendants — Assistant Commissioner of Police Sunday J. Ubua, Assistant Superintendent of Police Bawa James, Inspector Simon Agirgba and Inspector John Nuhu — have pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The two drug traffickers, Chibunna Umeibe and Emeka Ezenwanne, pleaded guilty and were subsequently convicted and sentenced to two years’ imprisonment each on relevant counts.
During Wednesday’s proceedings, the defence also raised a separate request for the NDLEA to produce the list of its officers who were on duty at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport on January 19, 2022.
The defence said the document would assist it in determining its next course of action in the case. An NDLEA officer was expected to produce the list in court.
Justice Nwite adjourned the matter until Thursday, October 8, for continuation of the trial.
