DSS stops American lawyer from visiting Kanu in detention

The operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS), on Thursday, denied the United States lawyer, Bruce Fein from meeting with the leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.

Newsflash Nigeria reports that this is a violation of the order gave by Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court asking the DSS to allow Kanu’s legal team and relatives to visit him in detention.

Justice Nyako, however, stated that such access would not be free for all, noting that it must be regimented.

But in a statement on Thursday, lead counsel to IPOB’s leader, Ifeanyi Ejiofor said the DSS denied the IPOB leader’s legal team access to him.

Ejiofor said the secret police denied himself and other lawyers including “IPOB’s Attorney in the United States, Bruce Fein”, from meeting with Kanu.

He described the denial as a violation of the order of a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja which ordered that the DSS should allow the lawyers to visit Kanu twice a week.

The lawyer had previously alleged maltreatment by the DSS during the routine visits.

Ejiofor’s statement on Friday was titled, ‘Update On Yesterday’s Visit Being 2nd Day Of September 2021.’

It read, “Yesterday (Thursday’s) Court ordered visit to Our Client- Onyendu Mazi Nnamdi Kanu was aborted by the officials of the State Security Services on a reason we find extremely ridiculous.

“Following the arrival of Mr. Bruce Fein, a foremost American trained Constitutional Law Lawyer and IPOB’s Attorney in the United States of America, the game obviously took an interesting twist.

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“Despite our formal notification to the Service, in line with the existing protocol, and in compliance with the Court-Ordered guideline, the officials of the Department of State Security Services came up with an excuse, “that the person assigned to receive us during yesterday’s visit was on A SPECIAL ASSIGNMENT”, and as such, the visit cannot be conducted.

“This is not only ridiculous but a clear violation of the Court Order on guidelines for visiting our Client- Onyendu Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.

“For the records, we have been consistently visiting Our Client on the specified days and time of the week, and there hasn’t been any time we were denied access to him on the ground that an individual assigned to receive us was not available.

 “Needless to mention, that no one individual has been specifically assigned to receive us on any of the visits. They are fully aware that the visit takes place every Monday and Thursday.

“Thankfully, we have another date for Monday, and we do hope that this individual will be available on Monday to receive us, whilst we have taken steps to formally bring this latest infraction to the attention of the Court.

“We will continue to update you all, while we continue to urge for your relentless prayers and understanding. We are winning, you can be assured.”

Recall that that the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), at a press briefing in Abuja on June 29, 2021, announced that the IPOB leader was arrested in a foreign country and extradited to Nigeria.

Kanu, who was born on September 25, 1967, is a holder of Nigerian and British passports. He had earlier jumped bail in June 2018 before leaving for the United Kingdom though he said that he fled because his life was no longer safe in Nigeria.

Upon his re-arrest and extradition in June 2021, he was re-arraigned before Justice Binta Nyako for terrorism-related charges and has since been remanded in the DSS custody in Abuja.

Justice Nyako did not attend to the prayer of Kanu’s lawyers that the court should grant a pending application before it to transfer Kanu from the custody of the DSS to a correctional centre in Abuja.

Justice Nyako had adjourned the trial of Kanu to October 21, 2021, for the continuation of the hearing.

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