Embattled Deputy Commissioner of Police, Abba Kyari, has reportedly escaped attempted murder by aggrieved inmates at the Kuje prison in Abuja after he was accused of insincerity in his bribe-for-release deals when he was in active service.

The incident, which was said to have occurred on May 4, 2022, has raised attempts to move Kyari out of Kuje prison where he is currently detained, following his legal battle with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).

The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja had rejected the bail plea of Kyari and his six co-defendants who are currently facing trial over alleged involvement in 25kg of cocaine.

Kyari and his accomplices had been arraigned by the NDLEA on eight-count charge bordering on dealing in cocaine, obstruction, and conspiracy.

He has also been indicted in the United States for alleged involvement in a $1.1m scam carried out by a notorious Internet scammer, Ramon Abass, popularly known as Hushpuppi.

However, other inmates, who were said to have been arrested for drug-related offenses, attempted to kill Kyari and claimed the suspended Intelligence Response Team leader prosecuted them despite taking bribes from them.

According to Premium Times, a source who is a state investigator and intelligence officer, described Kyari as a “dodgy criminal”.

Quoting the inmates, one of the sources said Kyari was “eliminating smaller (drug) dealers to clear the field for Afam Ukatu,” a suspected billionaire drug baron allegedly behind N3 billion Tramadol deal linked to Kyari.

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“Inmates claimed that upon his arrest, Abba Kyari demanded bribes to kill the case, then still prosecuted them,” a Kuje prison source who accessed the testimonies of the aggrieved inmates said.

Kyari was said to have been rescued by officials and has since been kept in an isolated cell “under heavy protection where no one sees him for fear of attack or poisoning”.

A source added that Kyari had to pay each of the aggrieved inmates N200,000 ‘in initial settlement fees’ and then “procured DSTV subscription for cells to buy loyalty and peace”.

The source disclosed that despite the gesture, the aggrieved inmates have continued to threaten Kyari’s life.

“Regardless of the level of protection, they vowed to get him. The inmates have given him an ultimatum to return all he extorted from them or be killed. Relevant officials have assessed that he will be killed or badly injured if he continues to be remanded in Kuje,” Premium Times quoted the source as saying.

An official recommendation, it was learnt, has therefore been made that Kyari should be transferred out of Kuje to a State Security Service (SSS) facility.

Meanwhile, a prison source said Kyari has his way in Kuje prison, saying he bought the loyalty of the officers.

“So far, he has every relevant officer on his payroll. They do his bidding, he sees his wife, and he has access to mobile devices and marabouts,” the source said.

However, when contacted, the spokesperson for the Nigerian Correction Service, Francis Enobore, said: “I am not aware Abba Kyari paid anybody to secure his safety in prison.”

The Star