- Buruji Kashamu has started a fresh suit to stop the federal government from extraditing him to the US to face trial for alleged drug offences
- Kashamu, the senator representing Ogun east senatorial district, said he was not the person wanted for narcotics offences in the country
- The Federal High Court in Abuja recently ordered the AGF and NDLEA to stop taking extradition moves against the senator
The senator representing Ogun east senatorial district, Buruji Kashamu has filed suit before a Federal High Court seeking to stop his extradition to the United State of America (USA) to face drug charges.
The Punch reports that Kashamu through his lawyer, Rickey Tarfa began the suit before the Federal High Court in Lagos.
It was learnt that he attorney general of the federation, Abubakar Malami (SAN), was quoted to have said, “The US government has been told to make a fresh request for the senator after the former extradition proceedings were dismissed. As soon as the US government sends a fresh request, the new extradition proceedings will be commenced.”
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He noted that he believed that the statement reportedly made by the AGF was further to a letter dated July 14, 2016 with Ref. No. CAU/EXT080/15, “written on the instructions of the AGF, under the hand of one Shehu A. Bodinga of the Central Authority Unit of the Federal Ministry of Justice to the ambassador of the United States to Nigeria.”
According to him, in the said letter, the AGF had stated that, “Given the dismissal of the application for extradition of the suspect by Justice Kolawole, we can only bring up the case by filing a fresh extradition application, should the Court of Appeal rule in our favour.
“In this regard, the US Department of Justice needs to process and resubmit a new (original) extradition package, which is required under our laws, for the adjudicating judge’s file.”
Kashamu, in his affidavit, maintained that he was not the person wanted for narcotics offences in the US, adding that the British court had in 2003 exonerated him.
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He said: “The position is that the respondents are well aware that the applicant was not involved in the alleged narcotics offence committed in the US in 1994 and that the British court has exonerated the applicant of any such complicity in the proceedings brought against the applicant by the US authorities in London from 1998 to 2003.
“The federal government, represented by two officers of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, Dan Asebe Umaru and Femi Oloruntoba, had given evidence at the second of the said proceedings instituted in England by the US authorities against the applicant at the Bow Street Magistrates’ Court between 2002 and 2003, that the applicant was not the person implicated in the alleged narcotics offence committed in the US in 1994 and District Judge Time Workman had consequently found in his judgment that the extradition matter, delivered on the 10th of January 2003, that the applicant was not the person sought by the US authorities.”
Kashamu said he was also exonerated by Lord Justice Pill at the High Court in the Hebeas Corpus. The senator further explained that the US government having not appealed against the judgment, any attempt to extradite him to the US was an illegality.
Meanwhile, Legit.ng had reported that the Federal High Court in Abuja ordered the AGF, Abubakar Malami, and the NDLEA not to take any further steps in their alleged bid to have the serving Senator Buruji Kashamu, extradited to the United States.
Justice Babatunde Quadri, ruling on an ex-parte application filed and argued by Kashamu’s lawyer, J. O. Odubela, on Tuesday, June 5, ordered parties to the suit, including the AGF and NDLEA, as respondents, to maintain status quo.
The judge also granted leave to the applicant to serve processes in relation to the suit, including the originating summons on NDLEA outside the jurisdiction of the court at 4 Shaw Road, Ikoyi, Lagos.
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Source: Legit.ng
