Hushpuppi: Suspended Kyari appears before four-man panel this week

DCP Abba. Kyari

The indicted Head of the Intelligence Response Team, Abba Kyari, a Deputy Commissioner of Police, will appear before the Special Investigation Panel probing his alleged involvement in a $1.1 million Internet fraud this week.

This is contained in an official release by the Police Service Commission, according to the release titled, ‘FBI indictment: PSC suspends DCP Abba Kyari, directs IGP to furnish it with information on further developments.’ The commission stated that Kyari’s suspension took effect from Saturday (July 31) and would subsist pending the outcome of the investigation in respect of his indictment by the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation.

According to the release, “The Police Service Commission has suspended Abba Kyari, a Deputy Commissioner of Police and Head, Intelligence Response Team of the Nigeria Police Force from the exercise of the powers and functions of his office.”

Earlier, the IGP in a letter has recommended the suspension of Kyari from the police till the outcome of an ongoing internal investigation into his indictment for alleged involvement in a $1.1 million internet fraud by the FBI.

The IG, in a letter to the PSC, dated July 31, 2021, noted that the recommendation for Kyari’s suspension was in line with the Force’s internal disciplinary processes. A Special Investigation Panel comprising four senior police officers, which will be headed by the Deputy Inspector-General of Police, Force Criminal Investigations Department, Joseph Egbunike, was also set up to investigate the allegations against the DCP.

The IG said this decision are taken to create an enabling environment for the Special Investigation Panel to carry out its investigations into the weighty allegations against him without interference and to reaffirm his commitment in having a professional police force driven by integrity and service.