The Federal High Court in Abuja has granted permission to the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) to freeze the bank account of a suspected notorious terrorist, Usman Idris, for upwards of 30 days.
The account domiciled at the United Bank for Africa (UBA) was ordered to be frozen for the period to enable the security agency to carry out forensic investigations into the alleged terror activities of the owner.
Justice Peter Lifu issued the order while granting the request of the DIA contained in an ex-parte application brought before him.
Counsel to the security agency, Barrister S. A. Aminu, argued the ex-parte motion during which she claimed that the bank account operator had been linked with so many heinous crimes.
Among the heinous crimes said to have been perpetrated by the detainee are banditry, kidnapping, oil bunkering, and terrorism financing.
The ex-parte application marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1145/2024 was backed with some incriminating exhibits, including illicit arms purchases, and requested 90 days to place an embargo on the account.
However, the judge, after putting several questions to the lawyer, granted the order with a clause that the freezing of the account must not be more than 30 days.
The questioning of the lawyer by the judge followed the discovery that the suspected terrorist had been in DIA custody since February 26 this year.
In frantic efforts to satisfy the judge, the lawyer revealed that the detainee had continued to make confessions, which had led to the arrest of several other suspects.
Justice Lifu wondered why it has taken the DIA so long to complete the investigation into allegations against the suspect, warning the security agency that the law presumes the detainee’s innocence.
Besides the presumption of innocence, the judge asked the lawyer to advise the DIA authorities that there is a time limit within which a suspect must be held or charged before an appropriate court for prosecution.
It will be recalled that the suspect was among 20 other suspected terrorists, including a serving police ASP, ordered to be detained for 30 days by the judge to enable the DIA to complete the investigation into the series of allegations of criminalities against them.