Nigeria: Despite Suspension, ‘Supercop’ Kyari Retained Loyalty of Elite Squad, Called the Shots

 

By Derrick Bangura

More information about how suspended Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Abba Kyari acquired the eternal love of operatives of the elite police squad, the Intelligence Response Team (IRT), has surfaced.

Despite his suspension, Kyari maintained control over the operatives, calling the shots behind the scenes through his deputy, ACP Sunday Ubua, who was also seconded to Disu.

The IRT was created by the then-Inspector General of Police to deal with high-profile crimes such as kidnapping and even terrorism.

The team, led by Kyari at the time, quickly established itself as a crime-fighting unit, as seen by the frequent arrests and types of cases they uncovered.

But Kyari did not stumble onto such a group by chance; he had trained them in Lagos while he was the state’s commander-in-chief (Special Anti Robbery Squad SARS), which is now disbanded.

While at SARS, the squad grew stronger by cracking cases, however, they were accused of extrajudicial killings, fraud, and collecting money from detainees’ families in exchange for their release at various periods.

The case of Evans Onwuamadike, the ‘Billionaire kidnapper,’ who was apprehended by Kyari and his crew, catapulted him into national recognition.

Although DCP Tunji Disu, the Commander of the Lagos State Rapid Response Squad (RRS) at the time, laid the groundwork for his arrest with the help of then-Commissioner of Police Fatai Owoseni, Kyari and his men reaped the fame and promotions that came with it.

However, Kyari’s men allegedly re-looted the loot, tarnishing the high-profile arrest.

The operatives were said to have packed both local and foreign money, as well as exotic phones, fancy wristwatches, jewelry, televisions, and even glass cups, during the operation.
Evans accused Kyari and his men of forcibly collecting N50 million from him and N5 million from his wife under the guise of being freed on bond in a lawsuit filed by his attorneys.
Evans also claimed in the affidavit that the same police officers robbed him of $10,000.
As they withstood one allegation after another, the bond between Kyari and the men became stronger with each mission.
Evans also claimed in the affidavit that the same police officers robbed him of $10,000.
As they withstood one allegation after another, the camaraderie between Kyari and the men became stronger with each mission.

The IRT, together with the STS, was merged into the Force Intelligence Bureau (FIB), directed by Ibrahim Lamorde, as part of the police hierarchy’s efforts to rein in the group’s apparent excesses.

Despite this, the team was nevertheless plagued by a slew of petitions and charges of human rights violations and corruption. Despite this, the government appeared powerless to intervene due to the godfathers suspected of being behind Kyari.
However, it appeared that he had been finally jailed after his suspension by the PSC on the suggestion of the current IGP, Baba, over the Hushpuppi case.

Despite the skilled hands of DCP Tunji Disu, who was detailed by the IG to take over the unit, he was still dictating the shots at the IRT, unbeknownst to the police leadership.

Checks by THISDAY found that when Kyari took office, he was still carrying out covert criminal operations through his then-deputy, who was also seconded to Disu.
According to a senior officer from the force headquarters who spoke on the condition of anonymity to THISDAY, when Ubua was questioned by the IG, he said he was forced to execute Kyari’s orders since the suspended DCP assured him he would be restored shortly.

However, when the NDLEA briefed the IG on the evidence against Kyari and his men, they were all summoned for questioning, and Disu said he handed over to his deputy because he had an operation in Sokoto to carry out.

The deputy corroborated this, saying he carried out the operation on Kyari’s order without alerting the unit’s commander.
“The force is in a horrible place right now,” the person said. How could DCP Kyari have imagined that he would be restored following the FBI debacle? Who was it that was assuring him? The IG was taken aback when he learned that he had been assuring his men that DCP Disu would be fired and that he would be restored.

“That, however, does not absolve ACP Ubua, who should have known better than to put his personal devotion to a man ahead of the police force he swore to protect. The only positive outcome was that the IG ultimately signed DCP Disu’s appeal to allow him to raise his own squad rather than rely on those inherited from his predecessor.”
Despite the FBI’s damaging claims, THISDAY investigated what gave Kyari such hope that he would be vindicated and reinstated as usual.
According to a source close to Kyari, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) is to blame for his problems.

“When the Hushpuppi episode occurred, he told us that it would quickly fade away and that he would be reinstated,” he said. Given that he had detained some of them in various operations, he believes his problems were coordinated by IPOB.

“He said the FBI lawyer had Igbo ties and was likely sympathetic to the Biafra cause,” he said. So don’t worry; his godfathers were on top of the situation and were able to get him restored.”

Despite claims that IRT and STS were being phased out by the police, the IG has set measures in action to sanitize the units by deploying new officers.