The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has finally discharged and acquitted Ibrahim Ibrahim, the Zamfara State cleric who was arrested immediately after arriving the kingdom over alleged possession of a bag suspected to contain illicit drugs.
Recall that Mr Ibrahim was sponsored by the Zamfara State Government to perform Umrah in 2017.
Court documents sighted by this newspaper indicated that Mr Ibrahim was accused by Saudi authorities of trafficking of 1,497 red capsules carrying an (R) sign suspected to be Tramadol trafficked via Ethiopian Air Flight 402.
Upon the discovery of the bag in question, the documents stated that the Public Investigation and Prosecution Bureau, Jeddah, in conjunction with the Anti-drug Agency, also in Jeddah, then charged Mr Ibrahim for drug trafficking, an offence punishable by death.
The documents indicated that after the investigation, Mr Ibrahim was arraigned at the Jeddah Criminal Court.
The prosecutor prayed to the court to sentence the accused to death for committing an offence that contravened Section 1 of Act 37 of anti-drugs law of the country.
As the hearing continued, Mr Ibrahim, who pleaded not guilty to the charges levelled against him, was eventually acquitted, following the failure of the Prosecutor General to convince the court.
Dissatisfied with the judgement, the authorities, therefore, appealed the judgement of the lower court.
At the appellate court, DAILY NIGERIAN gathered, Mr Ibrahim’s case was also dismissed over prosecution’s failure to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt.
But Mr Ibrahim’s hope of gaining freedom was dashed after his acquittal by the court of appeal on January 24, 2019.
Despite the acquittal, the authorities seized his travel documents, a situation that forced him to remain in Saudi Arabia for three years.
But DAILY NIGERIAN gathered on Thursday that after the intervention of the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation, Zamfara State Government and Nigeria’s Consulate-General office in Jeddah, Mr Ibrahim has finally regained his freedom.
Confirming Mr Ibrahim’s final acquittal, Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in a statement on Friday by its spokesperson, Ferdinard Nwonye, also disclosed that the Consulate-General of Nigeria in the Kingdom had already completed the processing of relevant travel documents to facilitate Mr Ibrahim’s return to Nigeria.
The ministry, therefore, commended the Saudi Government for cooperating with Nigeria in the resolution of the matter.
“We also acknowledge and appreciate the efforts of our Consulate-General in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and the Zamfara State Government for providing the flight ticket of the Nigerian national back to the country,” the statement added.
