Coup: FG fails to produce court order on detention of Zaria cleric

The Federal Government has failed to produce an order of court authorising the detention of an Islamic cleric, Sheikh Sani Abdulkadir Zaria, accused of coup plot against President Bola Tinubu’s government.

Justice Peter Lifu ofa Federal High Court in Abujahad on Thursday ordered the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) to produce a purported order based on the Administration of Criminal Justice Act for the detention of the cleric after counsel to the agency, I O. Odom, Esq, pledged to produce same.

At the hearing of the fundamental rights enforcement application brought by his counsel Sunusi Musa (SAN), against the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the DIA, the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, and the Jaiz Bank Plc, he sought the release of his client pending hearing of the motion.

However, when the counsel could not produce the purported order, the court stood down the matter for some hours, that is 11 am to 3pm to enable the documents to be produced.

Upon resumption, Odom pleaded with the court for more time to produce the order because the defendant was only being held on behalf of the Defence Headquarters, adding that the agency’s provost marshal informed him that the chairman of the Special Investigation Panel (SIP) had travelled out of the country.

His submission was supported by the EFCC counsel.

Irked by the explanation, the judge wondered why the counsel could not mention the name or the court where the order was issued and the date.

He adjourned the matter for ruling on Friday.

Family sources linked the cleric’s ordeal to a N2 million gift wired to the bank account of the detained leader of the Fityanul Islam Tijanniyya sect by one of his adherents, who was indicted in the recent coup allegation.

In an interview after the proceeding, an associate of the detained cleric, Khalifa Dr Sheikh Aliyu Ahamad Abulfathi, bemoaned the antics of the federal government’s agencies’ over the matter.

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