Dasuki: Co-defendant Admits Writing Statement under Caution In Trial-Within- Trial
Aminu Baba Kusa, the second defendant in the trial of the former National Security Adviser, NSA, Colonel Sambo Dasuki (retd) on Friday, June 5, 2026, admitted before Justice Charles O. Agbaza of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Abuja that he personally wrote his extrajudicial statement in the office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, after reading and understanding the cautionary words, preceding the writing of his statement and further admitted that he appended his signature to the statement.
He made the admission under cross-examination by the prosecuting counsel, O.A. Atolagbe, in a trial-within-trial to determine the admissibility of the extrajudicial statement, after he claimed midway into the trial that his statement was obtained by the EFCC under duress, contrary to the provisions of Sections 15(4) and 17(3) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act ACJA 2015.
The defendant, a former Group Executive Director in the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation NNPC, now, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited also admitted that his statement was taken after a search had been conducted in his residence and that the contents of his statement entirely dwelt on the outcome of the search.
In challenging the defendant’s claim that he spent 30 days in EFCC’s custody, spanning from November 24, 2015 to December 24, 2015, the prosecuting counsel drew his attention to the fact that he appeared before Justice Baba Yusuf on December 14, 15 and 18, 2015, during which he was granted bail and was released after satisfying his bail conditions.
The cross-examination followed the defendant’s examination by his counsel as well as that of the third defendant, Solomon Umoh, SAN.
Justice Agbaza adjourned the matter until July 3, 2026, for the continuation of the sub-trial.
The quartet of Dasuki, Kusa, Acacia Holdings Limited and Reliance Referral Hospital Limited, Abuja are facing prosecution by the EFCC on a 32-count charge, bordering on criminal breach of trust and dishonesty to the tune of N33,200,000,000 (Thirty-three billion, Two Hundred Million Naira).
