IGP’s alleged N120bn fraud: FG files additional charges against Sen. Misau

The Federal Government has amended its initial five counts criminal charges preferred against Senator Isah Misau for accusing the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Ibrahim Idris, of perpetrating a number of sundry alleged criminal offences.

Misau also accused the IGP of being involved in illegal acts that fetch him about N120 billion annually.
The matter which is before an Abuja High Court in Maitama, had two new allegations leveled against the senator on Tuesday, November 28, a day the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami (SAN), engaged a private prosecutor to handle the case on behalf of the Federal Government.

The Federal Government is accusing the lawmaker representing Bauchi Central senatorial district of making “injurious falsehood” against IGP Idris and the Nigerian Police Force.

In a charge marked FCT/HC/CR/345/2017, the Federal government named some of the “injurious falsehood” to include Misau’s allegations that police officers paid as much as N2.5 million to get special promotion and posting through the Police Service Commission (PSC); that the police boss diverted money meant for the purchase of Armoured Personnel Carriers, Sport Utility Vehicles and other exotic cars; as well as an allegation that the IGP made almost half of the mobile commanders in the country the people of his Nupe extraction.

Misau, who is a retired Deputy Superintendent of Police aside accusing the IGP of instituting roadblocks across Nigeria with the purpose of extorting money from unsuspecting motorists, also claimed that Idris had sexual affair with female police officers.

He had also accused the IGP of collecting illegal fees by way of security protections given to corporate organizations, eminent citizens and oil companies running into billions of Naira.

But in its suit, the Federal Government argued that the senator had by his claims committed an offence contrary to Section 393(1) of the Penal Code.

When the matter came up in court on Tuesday, the new prosecutor, Dr. Alex Iziyon (SAN), told the court that the AGF issued him a fiat to handle the trial and to also apply for a subpoena that was issued to compel the IGP to appear as a witness in the matter to be quashed.

Iziyon insisted that the said subpoena dated November 22, amounted to an abuse of court process, saying it was targeted at embarrassing the IGP.

The position of Iziyon was challenged by Misau’s lawyer, Dr. Joshua Musa (SAN), who queried the legal validity of the amended charge the Federal Government instituted against his client.

He also argued that the initial charge upon which his client was docked and granted N5 million bail on October 19 was legally defective as it was bereft of the required seal.

Musa further contended that in the face of such default, that the initial charge could not be amended.
Also on the matter regarding the subpoena against the IGP, Musa insisted that no law prohibited his client from applying for the police boss to appear as a witness to give evidence and tender documents in the matter.

The presiding judge, Justice Ishaq Bello, after listening to the arguments of both parties, fixed December 5 to hear all the pending applications.

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Meanwhile, the two new counts against Misau read, “That you Isah Hamman Misau of Hamman Misau Residence, Turaki Street, Misau, Bauchi State on or about 26th August, 2017 at Abuja and other part of Nigeria, within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court, did make a false statement of fact to wit: that the Inspector-General of Police is scoring high marks by making almost half of the mobile commanders in the country, people of his Nupe extraction which said false statement of fact was published in the This Day Newspaper and The Punch Newspaper both dated 26th August, 2017, knowing that such false statement of fact would harm the reputation of Mr. Ibrahim Kpotun Idris (the serving Inspector-General of Police) and the Nigeria Police Force and you thereby committed an offence.

“That you Isah Hamman Misau of Hamman Misau Residence, Turaki Street, Misau, Bauchi State on or about 26th August, 2017 at Abuja and other part on Nigeria within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, did make a false statement of fact wit: that the incumbent Inspector-General of Police, based on available records, series of petitions and reports from insiders, has no capacity to run the Police just like the Chairman of the Police Service Commission, Rtd IGP Mike Okiro, who also lacks similar capacity going N300 million scam and others hanging on his neck since 2011 during the presidential primary election of the People’s Democratic Party where he served as the head of the security committee which said false statement of fact was published in the Thisday Newspaper and the Punch Newspaper both dated 26th August, 2017 knowing that such false statement of fact would harm the reputation of Mr. Ibrahim Kpotun Idris (the serving Inspector-General of Police), Rtd IGP Mike Okiro, the Nigeria Police Force and the Police Service Commission and you thereby committed an offence”.

 

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