NSA Phone Tapping: Abuja Court Adjourns El-Rufai Trial to May, Orders Remand

By: Abudu Olalekan

Former Kaduna governor Nasir El-Rufai’s trial hit a pause. The Federal High Court in Abuja just adjourned his case until May 18, 19, and 20 for an accelerated hearing.

Here’s the situation. El-Rufai is facing a five-count amended charge. The allegation? He unlawfully intercepted the phone communications of the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu.

The court was supposed to hear his plea on Thursday. But his lawyer, Senior Advocate Oluwole Aladedoye, said a new, beefed-up five-count charge had been filed. They wanted to swap the old three-count charge for this new one.

El-Rufai has already pleaded not guilty.

Then things got messy. The judge ordered him remanded in DSS custody. His lawyer pushed back hard—El-Rufai is already in ICPC custody for a separate case. The court basically said, “Hold on, let’s figure out who actually has him.”

So, the case is pushed to May. They’ll sort out the custody question and hear all the pending applications, including that bail request.

Where did this all start? El-Rufai went on Arise Television in February 2026. He claimed associates had tapped Ribadu’s calls. His exact words: “He made the call because we listened to their call.” And, “Someone tapped his phone… we also have our ways.”

Those comments caused a huge uproar. Presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga demanded an investigation, saying El-Ruful wasn’t above the law.

Court documents—previously obtained by Reportersroom—show one count alleges he admitted to the interception, which violates the Cybercrimes Act.

So, the legal battle continues in May. Stay tuned.