A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has discarded the evidence provided by John Nwonke, the second defence witness in the ongoing drug trafficking trial involving Abba Kyari, the suspended former head of the Police Intelligence Response Team, and four other officers.
Presiding Judge Emeka Nwite took the decision on Wednesday after Nwonke repeatedly failed to show up in court to continue his testimony and face cross-examination, despite a prior warning that his evidence would be erased if he missed the session.
The judge’s decision came after an oral application by Joseph Sunday, lead counsel for the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, who pointed out the witness’s persistent absences. Nwite ruled that Nwonke had been granted ample time and opportunity to present his evidence and submit to cross-examination by the prosecution, but neglected to do so.
Defending Kyari and co-defendant Simon Agirgba, lawyer Julius Mba explained that Nwonke was a subpoenaed witness who might not have known about the specific court date. Nwonke had earlier sent a written note to the court claiming ill health as the reason for his absence. However, Sunday countered that the letter failed to specify the nature of the illness or name the hospital where he was purportedly being treated.
Following a warning issued by the judge on Monday that the witness’s testimony would be foreclosed if he failed to attend Wednesday’s proceedings, Nwonke was again missing when the matter was called. This led the prosecution to request the court to enforce its earlier directive.
Kyari is standing trial alongside fellow officers Sunday Ubua, Bawa James, Simon Agirgba, and John Nuhu over charges of tampering with cocaine seized from two suspects, Chibunna Umeibe and Emeka Ezenwanne, at the airport. While Umeibe and Ezenwanne pleaded guilty and were convicted in 2022, Kyari and his fellow officers pleaded not guilty.
During the same session, the defence requested the court to compel the NDLEA to provide a register of its officers who were on duty at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport in Enugu on January 19, 2022, when the crime allegedly took place. Mba indicated that the information was necessary to guide the defence’s strategy.
Sunday objected to the subpoena served for the document, pointing out that it was addressed to the “director-general” of the NDLEA—a title that does not exist in the agency. He noted, “What the agency has is the office of chairman/chief executive officer and the agency’s secretary and not a director-general.”
Despite the procedural flaw, the NDLEA prosecutor assured the court that an officer from the agency would present the roster of personnel on duty at the airport on Thursday.
The trial has been adjourned until Thursday for continuation.
