Did Tinubu Order Release, Reinstatement of Abba Kyari? Social Media Claims Fact-checked
- Questions have circulated about the release and reinstatement of suspended police deputy commissioner, Abba Kyari
- There were claims that President of Nigerian, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, made the order but this has since been debunked
- Kyari was arrested in February 2022 by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) on criminal charges
Legit.ng journalist Adekunle Dada has over 8 years of experience covering metro, government policy, and international issues
FCT, Abuja - President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was alleged to have ordered the release and reinstatement of suspended police deputy commissioner Abba Kyari.
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) arrested Kyari on February 14, 2022, on criminal charges.

Source: UGC
According to an investigation in the United States, the celebrated police officer was also accused of conspiring with Ramon Abbas, aka Hushpuppi, to commit money laundering.
As reported by Dubawa, an Instagram user named Northern Connect claimed in a post that President Tinubu ordered Kyari’s release and reinstatement to the police force on July 20, 2025.
Kyari once led the police’s Intelligence Response Team (IRT) in the country before he was arrested.
Comments from the post showed that many people believed the news and assumed President Tinubu was strategically gaining Northern supporters before the 2027 election.
Did President Tinubu order Kyari's prison, reinstatement?
After several searches on Google, it was discovered that no credible media platform reported that President Tinubu ordered the release of Kyari from prison and his reinstatement to the Nigeria Police Force.
Findings show that the disgraced official was ordered to surrender his passport after he was temporarily released from prison custody to conclude his mother’s final burial rites and to report regularly to the NDLEA.
However, the court did grant Kyari conditional bail in May 2024 after he had spent 27 months in detention.
When the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Muyiwa Adejobi, was contacted to react to the viral claim on social media, he said:
“Ask the Federal Government, please. I think that’s the best way to go.”
Conclusion on claims about Abba Kyari's release
The viral claim that President Tinubu ordered the release of Kyari from prison and reinstated him into the police is false.
No credible news organisation reported that the suspended police deputy commissioner was released or reinstated.

Source: Twitter
Court denies granting bail to Abba Kyari
Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja said the court has the power to release Kyari, but would not do that because of the gravity of the allegations against him.
The court also said that the defendant had not presented any evidence for him to be granted bail, in relation to the charges against him.
Fact-checker speaks on viral Kyari reinstatement claim
Similarly, a certified fact-checker trained by Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, Jennifer Stephen, also dismissed the viral claim that President Tinubu ordered the release and reinstatement of suspended Deputy Commissioner of Police Abba Kyari.
Stephen, who spoke with Legit.ng, said the narrative lacked any credible backing and remained speculative in the absence of official communication from the presidency.
“I’d say that viral claims of Abba Kyari’s reinstatement by the president are only speculative beliefs that aren’t true until proven otherwise by facts and backed by a press statement or posts from the special adviser to the president on media.”
She noted that other publications reporting calls for clemency from groups like the Human Rights Commission also contradict the reinstatement narrative:
“Going by other publications online, such as the Human Rights Commission requesting the president to pardon Abba Kyari and reinstate him to office to fight insecurity, also proves that the first claim was untrue because this information doesn’t corroborate it.”
Court refuses to quash Kyari’s drug case
Legit.ng also reported that the suspended deputy commissioner of police lost his bid to quash the drug trafficking case levelled against him.

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Abba Kyari had requested that the charge against him and his co-defendants be dropped, having faced prosecution on the charges since 2022.
Editorial assistant Ololade Olatimehin provided exclusive commentary from a certified fact checker for this report.
Proofreading by Bruce Douglas, copy editor at Legit.ng.
Source: Legit.ng