The Nigerian government has disclosed its intentions to possibly extradite a suspended police officer, Abba Kyari, to the United States for his alleged involvement in Raymond Abas, popularly known as Hushpuppi’s multi-million dollars fraud case, according to a BBC pidgin report.
Abba Kyari, a high-ranking officer, who has received multiple honours, was one of six people indicted over Hushpapi’s crime, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Central District of California which emerged sometime in 2021.
Earlier in 2020, Hushpuppi, who built up a large social media following in Nigeria with posts detailing his lavish lifestyle, was extradited from Dubai to the United States in July 2020 to face criminal charges.
Having already spent about one year in custody, he has finally pleaded guilty to charges relating to schemes that cumulatively caused more than $24 million in losses to their victims.
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In the process, an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) of Nigeria indicted Kyari, a Deputy Commissioner of Police, leading to a warrant of arrest issued against him by a U.S. magistrate judge, Otis Wright.
Kyari was alleged to have taken money from Hushpuppi as payment for arranging for one of his accomplices to be locked up in Nigeria after a dispute among the conspirators.
This led to Kyari’s suspension from the police and from his position as the Head of Intelligence Response Team (IRT) by the Police Service Commission in August last year.
Although the suspected police officer has since denied his involvement in Hushpapi’s crime, the US government is calling for his arrest and the Nigerian government is reportedly making preparations to transfer him to the states.
Speaking on the matter, Nigeria’s Minister for Justice and Attorney-General, Mr Abubakar Malami said his outfit is collaborating with the United States government to ensure justice is served.
“The position now is that there are prima facie grounds. That is, reasonable grounds for suspicion that have been considered from the perspective of prosecution, from the perspective of likely extradition, if the need for so doing arises.
“Within the context of the international comity of nations, as it relates to the prosecution of cases, the international community is indeed collaborating and providing the necessary support for the purpose of ensuring that justice is done to the case with the peculiarities of the matter taken into consideration. So, what I am saying, in essence, is that internationally and locally, all hands are on deck.
“So, Nigeria is, indeed, doing the needful by way of supporting what America is doing for the purpose of ensuring that the cases are tried accordingly within the context of the American aspect of it, and then eventually if there is need for local prosecution, nothing as well stops it,” the minister is quoted to have stated during an interview with Nigeria’s Channels Television.