The Department of State Services has given reasons why its operatives swooped on the home of some serving judges on Friday night.
It said the action was a follow up to what it described as an outcome of special sting operation which it said involved some judges of the Supreme, Appeal and High Courts.
A senior officer of the security agency, Mr. Abdullahi Garba, who spoke with journalists in Abuja on Saturday, insisted that the action would be sustained.
He said that the operations were based on allegations of corruptions and other acts of professional misconduct by a few of the suspected judges.
Garba said, “The action is in line with its core mandate, as we have been monitoring the expensive and luxurious lifestyle of some of the judges as well as complaints from the concerned public over judgment obtained fraudulently and on the basis amounts of money paid.
“The judges involved were invited, upon which due diligence was exhibited and their premises searched. The searches have uncovered huge raw cash of various denominations, local and foreign currencies, with real estate worth several millions of naira and documents affirming unholy acts by these judges.”
While saying that some of the judges had made useful statements on the allegations against them, he added that a few of them declined “even with the glaring evidence that were found against them in terms of material cash, documents and property recovered pointing to their compromise.”
He said in one of the states where the operations were conducted, intelligence report indicated that a judge was having the sum of $2m in his house.
He, however, regretted that a governor bungled the operation by obstructing the operatives of the service from carrying out their job.
Garba said, “In one of the states where the operations were conducted, credible intelligence revealed that the Judge had Two Million United States Dollars ($2,000,000 USD) stashed in his house.
“When he was approached for due search to be conducted, he in concert with the state governor, mobilised thugs against the Service team.
“The team restrained itself in the face of unbridled provocative activities by those brought in by the governor. Unfortunately, the judge and the governor also engaged the tacit support of a sister security agency.
“The Service surveillance team noticed that upon frustrating the operation, the judge with the active support of the governor craftily moved the money to an unknown location which the Service is currently making effort to unravel.”
Meanwhile, he said large amount including foreign/local currencies had been recovered.
He gave the summaries of these to include:
N93,558,000.00, $530,087, £25,970 and €5,680 (euro).
He said other foreign currencies were also recovered, but didn’t give details.
Garba said the currencies were recovered from just three of the judges.
He refused to give their names and the total number of judges involved.
The cash, he added, were different from other banking documents, including real estate documents which he said were also recovered.
He said preparations were ongoing to arraign the suspects in a competent court of jurisdiction in line with the laws of the nation.
He said the Service had never invited Justice Walter Nkanu Onnoghen for investigation as being speculated in some quarters.
Apart from this, he said the judge was also neither being investigated by the Service.
Despite this action, he said the Service has tremendous respect for the judiciary and would not do anything to undermine it or its activities.
“The Service will also join hands with this noble institution in its fight to rid it of few corrupt Judges whose actions is undermining not only the Judiciary but the common bond of our national life,” he added.
Garba announced that the current operation will be sustained and followed “till sanity and sanctity were restored to the esteemed third arm of government and public confidence is regained.”
He called on members of the public to avail the Service of any information which could assist in its drive to rid the nation of corrupt practices and tendencies.
Garba refused to take questions after the briefing.
Sources said that Justice Sylvester Ngwuta has been released by the DSS.
A top source at the Supreme Court told our correspondent that the apex court judge was released Saturday night.
However, at press time, Justice Inyang Onnkoro and Adeniyi Ademola remained in custody.
Meanwhile, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Rivers State has described as most sacrilegious, the attempt by operatives of the Department of State Services, DSS, and policemen to shoot the state Governor, Chief Barr Nyesom Wike for intervening in the alleged abduction of a Federal High Court judge serving in the State in the early hours of Saturday.
The State chairman of the PDP, Bro Felix Obuah, in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Jerry Needam, asserted that the unruly behaviour of the overzealous security operatives is the worst of its kind in the history of Nigeria and is a cause for concern.
Alleging that the action of the security operatives is aimed at finding a reason to declare a state of emergency in the State, Obuah noted, the President, the National Assembly members, Judicial Officers, the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, and all relevant authorities and stakeholders should be put on notice on these acts of recklessness against Rivers State as injury to one is injury to all.
“There is no doubt that the Rivers State experience is exceptional and the democratic abuse by security agencies and their political paymasters is aimed at testing the mindset of the people and if left to stand will definitely go round and translate into a national malaise, the State PDP chairman lamented,” he said.
According to him, “it’s unheard of anywhere in the world where legally constituted authorities like the DSS and the Police will break into the residence of a legitimate federal judicial officer of the status of a judge for the purpose of arrest in the wee hours of the day, citing order from above as their reason.
“This is an act of brigandage and roguery, worse still when a serving governor intervened, same security agents cocked their guns against the State Chief Executive/Security Officer in the presence of the State Police Commissioner and Director of DSS. This, though real is most unbelievable”.
The State PDP chairman however appealed to Rivers people to remain calm in the face of the unprovoked attack and siege being perpetuated by those opposed to peace in the State so that they can have their way and continue with their exploitation underdevelopment of Rivers State.
“We are happy and grateful God is on our side. Each time they come up with a new strategy to cause mayhem they end up hitting the air because even the gods of the land abhor their intentions.
“Nonetheless, this particular sacrilege of attempting to shoot our Governor will never be taken kindly,” Obuah said. , Punch, Daily Post.
