Extrajudicial Buhari flouts court order. Stops Dasuki from travelling out of Nigeria

Extrajudicial Buhari flouts court order. Stops Dasuki from travelling out of Nigeria

In a brazen move to arrest and prevent the former National Security Adviser (NAS), to President Goodluck Jonathan, Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd), from travelling abroad for medical attention, security operatives, yesterday, besieged the Asokoro residence of the embattled former military officer.

The siege on his 13, John Khadiya home, Asokoro by the operatives of the Department of State Services, DSS, came moments after they had successfully stopped him from travelling abroad for medical attention, as directed by an Abuja Federal High Court.

The armed DSS officials, laden in two operational black trucks, stationed themselves in front of the expansive compound of the former NSA but were not confrontational with passers-by, who did not understand what was going on around the highbrow neighbourhood.

Vanguard learnt that the siege might not be unconnected with a renewed bid to arrest and charge Dasuki to a different court over what a security source described as “fresh evidence” against him.

The overall goal, according to informed sources, is to make it impossible for Dasuki to leave Nigeria with charges of illegal arms possession and money laundering hanging on his neck.

The sources said the security agents were dissatisfied with Justice Ademola Adeniyi’s order, directing them to release Dasuki’s passport for him to travel abroad for three weeks in search of medical attention.

The security establishment, it was learnt, are apprehensive Dasuki could escape from the country and evade prosecution for offences against the state.

Justice Adeniyi Ademola of the Federal High Court, last Tuesday, granted Dasuki’s request for his passport to be released to enable him to travel abroad for medical treatment.

However, Vanguard learnt, yesterday, that Dasuki, who was billed to travel on Wednesday night, was stopped by security operatives at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja.

Dasuki reportedly returned to the airport yesterday morning to make his trip but was also prevented by the same security agents, who did not, however, give him any reason for their action.

Dasuki may challenge DSS

A frustrated Dasuki was said to have returned to his Asokoro house following the aborted trip and was considering returning to the Federal High Court to seek redress against the Department of State Security Service, whose agents halted his movement abroad.

A source close to the former NSA said that Dasuki was in his house as at the time Vanguard made contact with him. The source denied reports that Dasuki had again been placed under house arrest by the DSS.

The source said: “The security agents only prevented Dasuki from travelling on Wednesday night and Thursday morning. He has returned to his house and is not under house arrest.”

But the DSS operatives had on Tuesday attempted to arrest a former Adamawa State Governor, Boni Haruna, who had gone to court to stand surety for the Dasuki.

Haruna, a former minister in the cabinet of President Goodluck Jonathan, was reportedly questioned on how he knew that Dasuki would be granted bail and why he went there as a surety.