Former head of the Inspector General of Police’s Intelligence Response Team (IRT), Deputy Commissioner of Police Abba Kyari, has reacted to the reports that Ramon Abbas, a suspected fraudster also known as Hushpuppi, gave him N8 million in bribes.
Kyari was suspended by the Police Service Commission following an allegation by the American Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) that he received a bribe from Hushpuppi and his co-conspirators.
But Kyari, in his post, which has now been deleted, said the suspected fraudster showed evidence to his team that someone was holding his money.
“Nobody demanded or collected any money from Abbas Hushpuppi. He can be interviewed publicly in the presence of the world media by the people holding him to confirm this,” Kyari wrote in the post.
“He also called for another case in June 2020 and complained about a financial transaction with a second person whom he said his friend sent 8 million naira to and pleaded for his friend’s money to be recovered. He sent transaction slips and other evidence to prove their case against the person.
“All these can be verified from Hushpuppi since he is still in custody. And it can be verified from the person who collected 8 million naira from Hushpuppi’s friend, whom they complained about, is alive and is in Nigeria.”
Kyari is currently being grilled by a panel set up to probe the allegations.
The Inspector-General of Police, on Monday, replaced Kyari with Tunji Disu, a former Commander of the Rapid Response Squad in Lagos, as the IRT head.