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Tag: NDLEA arrest

  • Seven years after escape from prison, NDLEA arrests wanted Abuja drug kingpin+Photos

    Seven years after escape from prison, NDLEA arrests wanted Abuja drug kingpin+Photos

    . Another nabbed in Ondo after jumping bail since 2022 as Agency recovers 63,767.3kgs of cannabis, 82,320 pills of opioids in raids across 8 states

    Seven years after his escape from prison custody following his conviction for drug dealing, a notorious major distributor of illicit substances within the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, Ibrahim Momoh, popularly known as Ibrahim Bendel, has been arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA during a raid of his hideout at Filin Dabo, Dei-Dei area of the FCT.

    Ibrahim Momoh was first arrested on 27th November, 2014 with cannabis sativa weighing 385.1kgs, prosecuted, convicted and sentenced to seven and a half years in prison on 22nd July 2015 but while serving his jail term at Kuje, he escaped from prison custody on 16th May, 2016.
    Following credible intelligence, NDLEA operatives on 20th November 2022 stormed the warehouse of the fleeing ex-convict, Ibrahim Momoh, and recovered 81 jumbo bags of cannabis weighing 1,278kgs.

    The store was located within his poultry farm in Dei-Dei area of the FCT. Though Momoh was not around at the time, his warehouse manager, 55-year-old Ghanaian, Richard Forson Gordon was arrested, prosecuted and sentenced to two years in jail. The Agency thereafter declared Ibrahim Momoh wanted.

    The manhunt for the drug lord paid off on 5th November 2023 when operatives again raided his hideout at Filin Dabo, Dei-Dei area of Abuja where he was arrested with 56.9kgs of cannabis sativa and 42.7 grams of Diazepam. In another raid in the same area of the FCT on Monday 13th November, a suspect Yusufa Ibrahim, 27, was arrested with 75.3kgs of cannabis.

    Meanwhile, a massive operation in the forest of Efon Alaye in Efon local government area of Ekiti state on Saturday 18th November 2023 has led to the destruction of 52,500 kilograms of cannabis sativa covering over 21 hectares of farmland while a total of ninety two bags of same substance weighing 1,380 kilograms were recovered and another 250 bags weighing 3,000kgs stored in different huts on the farm were also burnt.

    No fewer than 15 suspects were arrested on the farm during the operation. They include: Okikiri Julius, 27; Ozoemene Friday Efajemu, 31; Tosin Ibrahim, 18; Israel Samuel, 25; Godwin David, 39; Friday Isaac, 19; Ayomide Igbekele, 18; Joshua Daniel, 27; Emmanuel Nwachukwu, 19; Emeka Onyeama, 31; Ani Augustine, 27; Obasi Ogbu, 32; Orsusue Peter, 23; Daniel Emmanuel, 18; and Yinusa James, 22.

    In Ondo state, five persons including another wanted drug kingpin, Christopher Onyebuchi, 40, were arrested at New Bridge Compound, Idoani on Wednesday 15th November and a total of 1,945 kilograms of cannabis recovered from them. Others include: Olorunda Ojo, 52; Femi Tomoye, 22; Abdurahman Salahu, 29; and Momoh Jimoh, 31. Onyebuchi had earlier been arrested by NDLEA on 25th March 2022 with 89kgs of same substance but jumped bail after he was arraigned at the Federal High Court, Akure. Operatives in the state also on Sunday 12th Nov raided Upemen village in Owo where they recovered 1,834kgs of same substance with 273kgs also seized the previous day, Saturday 11th Nov at Ipesi Akoko.

    While NDLEA officers in Sokoto recovered 290kgs of cannabis from a female suspect, Fatima Salmanu, 20, at Gangaren Tashar, Illela Sokoto in Sokoto North LGA on Thursday 16th Nov, their colleagues in Edo state evacuated 808kgs of the same psychoactive substance stored in a forest at Igueben on Monday 13th Nov.
    Not less than 231kgs of cannabis were recovered and five suspects arrested in a joint raid between NDLEA operatives and soldiers in Kwande council area of Benue state on Monday 13th Nov. Those arrested include: Denen Terhemba, 25; Liambee Iorhuna, 36; Iorhuna Sughnen, 20; Aboh Sonter, 23; and Msendoo Tyokaa, 36.

    While operatives in Ogun state on Tuesday 14th Nov arrested a suspect, Tony Jonah at Abule Iroko, with cannabis sativa weighing 67kgs, those in Lagos arrested Chike Agu at Ago Palace way, Isolo with 364.3kgs of Loud, a variant of cannabis.

    In Imo state, NDLEA operatives on patrol along Owerri -Onitsha expressway on Monday 13th Nov intercepted a truck marked XS 669KRD driven by one Orji Ifeanyi, 33. A search of the truck led to the seizure of 82,320 pills of opioids including Tramadol 225mg, and Diazepam as well as 32.5 litres of codeine cough syrup and 100 pieces of Molly weighing 49.62 grams.

    The War Against Drug Abuse, WADA, advocacy campaign of the Agency continued in equal measure in schools, markets, worship places and others across the country in the past week.

    Some of them include: WADA advocacy lecture for Muslim faithful at Badagry Central Mosque, Badagry, Lagos; WADA sensitisation lecture for students of Government Science College, Wase, Plateau state; WADA sensitisation lecture for students of Anglican Girls Secondary School, Ogidi, Anambra state; WADA advocacy lecture at St. Thomas Grammar School, Otan Aiyegbaju, Osun; WADA advocacy lecture for students and staff of Government Junior Arabic Secondary School, Maigatari, Jigawa state as well as students and staff of Mainland Technical College, Oron, Akwa Ibom state.
    While commending the officers and men of the FCT, Ekiti, Ondo, Sokoto, Lagos, Edo, Benue, Ogun and Imo Commands for the arrests and seizures of the past week, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed

    Buba Marwa (Retd) urged them and their compatriots across all formations of the Agency to intensify the offensive action tempo against drug cartels as the yuletide season approaches while maintaining a balance with their drug demand reduction efforts.

    Femi Babafemi
    Director, Media & Advocacy
    NDLEA Headquarters Abuja
    Sunday 19th November 2023

  • 2 business men excrete 193 cocaine pellets in NDLEA custody

    2 business men excrete 193 cocaine pellets in NDLEA custody

    … after arrest at Abuja airport

    …as Agency arrests 185 at Abuja, Kano drug joints; seizes Saudi-bound cocaine parcels, Colorado consignments from Canada

     

    Two businessmen arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, NAIA, Abuja for cocaine ingestion have both excreted 193 pellets of the illicit drug after three days in observatory custody.

    The traffickers: Onoh Ebere, 49, and Christian Ifeanyi Ogbuji, 47, were intercepted at the Abuja airport on Wednesday 10th May upon their arrival from Uganda via Addis Ababa, onboard Ethiopian Airlines flight ET 951. Though both suspects have businesses they manage in Nigeria, their main source of income has been drug trafficking. They both travelled to Uganda and from there crossed over to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia where they picked the consignments before returning to Abuja with Lagos as their final destination.

    After days in excretion room, Ebere Onoh excreted a total of 100 pellets weighing 2.137kg while Christian Ifeanyi Ogbuji expelled 93 pellets hidden in his stomach with a gross weight of 1.986kg.

    Meanwhile, NDLEA operatives have raided two notorious drug joints, Zaro bunk in Bama road, Sabongari and the Sani Abacha indoor stadium, both in Kano metropolis where a total of 160 suspects were arrested with different quantities of illicit substances. Also, two suspects: Abubakar Sallau, 55, and Nazifi Abdullahi, 25, were arrested on Saturday 13th May, along Kano-Maiduguri road, with 5,000 pills of Tramadol 200mg, while a total of 65,200 tablets of tramadol and exol-5 were seized from the duo of Adamu Nagati, 30, and Ali Nasiru, 35. This is even as operatives in Abuja also arrested 25 suspects in raids across Tora Bora, Gwarinpa village, 3rd avenue in Gwarinpa, Karamo, Garki market, Sabongari Bwari and New Kucigoro IDP camp, within the FCT.

    Another bid to smuggle into Lagos a consignment of 24kg cannabis indica concealed in imported used cars from Canada was again frustrated by NDLEA operatives who seized the illicit substance on Thursday 11th May during a joint 100% examination of a container marked, MSMU 7412069, at the Prime Connection Bonded terminal, off Oshodi-Apapa expressway. Two clearing agents linked with the container, Chief G.O. Njokwu and Mr. Christopher Obialor, have been arrested in collaboration with men of Customs Service.

    In the same vein, operatives of the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation, DOGI, attached to courier firms have intercepted a Saudi Arabia-bound 398grams of cocaine hidden in native dresses during outward clearance of goods.

    A female suspect, Fatima Hassan was arrested on Friday 12th May at Agege, Lagos with 33.5kg of cannabis sativa, while 44kg of the same substance was recovered same day from the Lagos Island warehouse of a fleeing drug dealer. The previous day, Thursday 11th May, another suspect, Peter Joseph was arrested along Lagos/ibadan expressway with 10,000 pills of Tramadol 250mg and 1,500 tablets of Rohypnol concealed inside his Toyota Sienna vehicle, with registration number NRK 961XB.

    Similarly, a total of 68, 300 pills of various opioids mainly tramadol were recovered from one Bello Nasiru Usman when the truck conveying the illicit drugs was intercepted in Awka, Anambra state. In the same vein, 460,000mls of Akuskura in 7,800 bottles were seized from a dealer, Mohammed Kyari, 42, when he was arrested in Gamboru Ngala town, Jere LGA, Borno on Wednesday 10th May.

    While NDLEA operatives supported by soldiers raided the hideout of a notorious drug dealer, Jimoh Lekan (aka ‘komokomo’) in Owode, Ogun state where 134kg cannabis was recovered from his store on Thursday 11th May, their counterparts in Plateau state on Tuesday 9th May arrested a suspect Bashir Usman, 32, at the Gangare Area of Jos, with 43.951kg of cannabis.

    While commending the officers and men of NAIA, Tincan, Kano, FCT, Lagos, Ogun, Taraba, Borno, Plateau and Anambra Commands of the Agency as well as those of DOGI for their resilience, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd) has urged them and their peers across the country to intensify their drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction activities.

  • Court dismisses Kyari’s fundamental rights enforcement suit

    Court dismisses Kyari’s fundamental rights enforcement suit

    A fundamental rights enforcement suit filed by suspended DCP Abba Kyari, against National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, was dismissed on Thursday by the Federal High Court, Abuja.

     

    The judge, Inyang Ekwo, dismissed the N500 million fundamental rights suit for lack of diligent prosecution by Mr Kyari’s legal team.

     

    Kyari had filed the suit to challenge his alleged unlawful detention by NDLEA which arrested him and others over cocaine-trafficking allegations in February.

     

    The agency subsequently filed charges against him and his co-defendants before another judge of the Federal High Court in Abuja. The trial court has since ordered him and his co-defendants to remain in detention throughout his trial.

     

    It was gathered that Kyari’s lawyer, Cynthia Ikena, was absent when the fundamental rights enforcement suit came up on Thursday.

     

    With this development, NDLEA’s lawyer, Joseph Sunday, who is the agency’s Director of Prosecution and Legal Services, urged the court to strike out the suit.

     

    Responding, the judge noted that he was informed that Ms Ikena sent a letter, praying the court for an adjournment.

     

    The judge directed that the letter be shown to the NDLEA’s counsel, Mr. Sunday, who expressed surprise with the development. He said he was not copied in the letter by the rule of the court.

     

    He said the letter was not filed by the applicant and therefore not in compliance with the court’s rule.

     

    He prayed the court to strike out the matter.

     

    After listening to the NDLEA’s lawyer, Mr Ekwo struck out the case.

     

    The judge, after going into the substantive matter and seeing that parties had joined issues in the suit, went ahead to dismiss the case.

     

    The decision came less than a month after the judge threatened to dismiss the suit following the delay by Mr Kyari’s lawyer to serve NDLEA counsel with a filing.

     

    Kyari, who also has fraud charges pending against him in the U.S. and faces extradition proceedings in Nigeria, filed a suit for the enforcement of his fundamental rights against NDLEA in February.

     

    In the document, Mr Kyari, who described the allegation against him by NDLEA as “trumped-up,” said the agency had failed to establish a prima facie case against him.

     

    He averred that the allegation linking him to an international drug cartel by the anti-narcotic agency was untrue.

     

    He said since the Nigerian Police Force arrested him and handed him over to the NDLEA, he has been kept in custody since February 12, without having access to his medical treatment.

     

    Mr Kyari, a former head of the Police Intelligence Response Team (IRT), demanded N500 million in damages from the NDLEA over alleged unlawful arrest and detention.

     

    He also sought an order directing the NDLEA to tender a written apology to him in two national dailies.

  • NDLEA nabs “Mkpuru Mmiri” cook, fleeing drug kingpin Fidelis

    NDLEA nabs “Mkpuru Mmiri” cook, fleeing drug kingpin Fidelis

    The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency on Wednesday said it has arrested a fleeing drug kingpin, Yunana Fidelis, heading a syndicate operating at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, and six other members of his gang, including a methamphetamine (Mkpuru Mmiri) cook, Reuben Bekweri, 34.

     

    Bekweri was arrested in Owerri while trying to distribute a kilogramme of the illicit drug he cooked and packaged in seven nylon sachets in the Irete area of Imo State on Saturday, March 26.

     

    The drug kingpin (Fidelis) was said to have fled Lagos to Kaduna the moment their lid was blown open. Others include Adesanwo Temitope, Owoseni Temidayo, Fasoranti Shola and Bamigbade Jonathan.

     

    According to the NDLEA, their arrest took place after a string of operations against drug cartels across Nigeria was launched.

     

    The drug enforcement agency, in a statement by its Head of Media and Publicity, Femi Babafemi, said the operations led to the seizure of drugs and cash from the culprits.

     

    The agency noted that a professional methamphetamine (Mkpuru Mmiri) cook and a lawyer were also arrested in Owerri, Imo State, and Ado Ekiti, Ekiti State, respectively.

     

    The statement read in part, “The Lagos airport drug syndicate was behind the smuggling of 1,584,000 tablets of tramadol seized on Tuesday, March 15, by NDLEA operatives in collaboration with aviation security and customs service personnel at the airport. The seizure includes 17 cartons of 250mg tramadol branded as ‘Tamra’ weighing 669.70kg, and five cartons of 225mg tramadol under the brand name, ‘Royal’ with a gross weight of 217.15kg.”

     

    The NDLEA noted that the psychotropic substance, which was imported into the country from Pakistan, was smuggled through the airport tarmac and intercepted at the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria Personnel Yard.

     

    Two suspects: Ofijeh Mowa, a SAHCO driver, and Nyam Gazu Alex, a security guard with the Nigerian Aviation Handling Company, were initially arrested in connection with the seizure.

     

    “Further investigations by NDLEA operatives, however, led to the arrest of five other persons involved in the crime, including the ringleader, Yunana Fidelis, who fled Lagos to Kaduna the moment their lid was blown open. Others include Adesanwo Temitope, Owoseni Temidayo, Fasoranti Shola and Bamigbade Jonathan.

     

    “Fidelis, who is also a worker with NACHO, had escaped and fled to Kaduna after depositing N19.8m cash with a BDC operator to be paid later into his bank account.

     

    “After tracking him for days in Kaduna, on Friday, March 25, Fidelis relocated to Abuja where he was eventually arrested by NDLEA operatives at 7pm on Sunday, March 27, while he was trying to collect N1m cash from an undercover agent who posed as a BDC operator.

     

    “In addition to recovering the cash Fidelis deposited with the BDC operator in Lagos, the agency also placed a post-no-debit order on his identified bank accounts.”