The arrest supposedly occurred after a series of phone calls from President Bola Tinubu to Yari last month, News About Nigeria reports.
It was reported that the DSS arrested Yari on Thursday morning, citing his lack of regard for the president’s authority as the reason behind the action.
One official revealed that Yari was questioned about why he had ignored the president’s phone calls during the Senate leadership battle.
The former governor apparently defended his right to contest for the position, claiming that decisions about his political career should not be dictated by the president.
Insiders claim that former President Buhari sought to persuade Yari to withdraw his ambition, aiming to avoid a repeat of the circumstances surrounding Bukola Saraki’s emergence as Senate President in 2015.
The official allegedly disclosed, “We all knew that Saraki’s emergence back then was the first error President Buhari made, and it crippled his first four years in office.”
Yari’s ordeal began with a call from Yusuf Bichi, the DSS director-general, summoning him to the agency’s headquarters for an urgent discussion.
Throughout the day, he was detained by armed agents, only to be informed around 10:00 p.m. that he would not be released. Consequently, his planned visit with other Senate colleagues to former President Ibrahim Babangida the following day had to be canceled.
Sources indicate that Yari’s phones were confiscated, and it is expected that he may remain in custody for days or even weeks.
In addition to the arrest, the senator was questioned about transactions he had received from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), which authorities consider suspicious.
Yari, however, reportedly clarified that the funds were legitimate payments for consultancy services he provided to the forum of governors, claiming he still had outstanding balances to collect from the CBN.
