Tuesday, October 27 2026 - A Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed a no-case submission filed by former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai in his trial over the alleged unlawful interception of telephone conversations involving National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu.
Justice Joyce Abdulmalik ruled on Monday, October 26, that
the prosecution had presented sufficient evidence to require El-Rufai to enter
his defence against the five-count amended charge brought by the Department of
State Services. She adjourned the case until November 25, 2026, for the defence
to open its case.
El-Rufai filed the application after the prosecution closed
its case following testimony from two witnesses. His counsel, Paul Erokoro,
asked the court to discharge and acquit him, arguing that the prosecution had
failed to establish a prima facie case.
Erokoro maintained that the evidence was insufficient to
require his client to answer the allegations. Prosecution counsel Oluwole
Aladedoye opposed the application, arguing that the oral and documentary
evidence presented warranted a response from the defendant.
Justice Abdulmalik agreed that the proceedings should
continue to the defence stage. The ruling does not determine El-Rufai’s guilt.
The charges followed comments El-Rufai made during an appearance on Arise
Television’s Prime Time programme in February 2026.
During the interview, he claimed that someone had
intercepted Ribadu’s telephone conversation, allowing him to hear the national
security adviser allegedly instruct security operatives to arrest him. The
allegations arising from those comments form the basis of the DSS prosecution.
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