This is contained in a counter-affidavit filed by the NDLEA before a Federal High Court in Abuja, to oppose the contempt proceedings initiated by Kashamu against the agency and other respondents.
Kashamu had filed the contempt suit before Justice Gabriel Kolawole against the Chairman of the NDLEA, the NDLEA itself and the Attorney-General of the Federation.
He anchored the proceedings on an allegation that the three respondents were taking steps to extradite him to the USA in disobedience to various orders of court.
Justice Kolawole had last year struck out the extradition proceedings initiated by the then Attorney-General of the Federation, Mr. Mohammed Adoke, against Kashamu.
The decision by Justice Kolawole was based on the previous rulings of the Lagos Divisions of the Federal High Court against the planned extradition.
But the NDLEA, in a counter-affidavit deposed to by one of its litigation officers, Mr. Rifkatu Philip Barde, the anti-drugs agency, said the court orders referred to by the senator did not prevent the respondents from taking lawful steps to extradite him.
The counter-affidavit read in part, “The respondents cannot be restrained perpetually from arresting the applicant. What the respondents are hereby restrained from doing, that is assuming they can even act on any application for his extradition having regard to the substantive judgment, is unlawful arrest or abduction without a warrant duly issued in line with the Extradition Act as amended.
“The decision of the court in the case of Kashamu did not shut the door to any lawful steps that may be subsequently taken to extradite him pursuant to the Extradition Act Cap. E, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.”
The agency stated that Kashamu had been using false text messages to mislead the court and that the call log which he claimed to have obtained from the service provider did not support the his claim about the alleged attempt to forcefully abduct him and ferry him to USA to face drug crime charges.
No comments :
Post a Comment