The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested two notorious drug lords who head transnational criminal organisations involved in the trafficking of multi-billion-naira worth of illicit drugs.
The agency also seized their assets and fake currencies after weeks of intelligence-led operations within and outside the country.
The NDLEA’s Director of Media & Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, disclosed this on Sunday at the agency’s headquarters in Abuja. He said the two drug lords, who swallowed cocaine and heroin to evade detection, were nabbed after the agency’s operatives intercepted their consignments destined for Paris, France and Doha, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.
Babafemi gave the names of the drug lords as Hakeem Babatunde Salami and Okafor Ikechukwu Williams. He said Salami was the leader of the “Tajudeen Babatunde Abioye Transnational Criminal Organisation” that dealt in various narcotics such as cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine and ephedrine between Nigeria, Brazil, Ghana, South Africa, Mozambique and Europe.
He said Salami fled Nigeria to South Africa after the arrest of one of his syndicate members, Suleiman Babatunde Oba, at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos on August 25 for attempting to export 25.10kgs of ephedrine to South Africa.
He said Salami was however tracked down and arrested with the collaboration of South African authorities and other intelligence and investigative mechanisms. He said some of his luxury vehicles were seized and his home in Surulere, Lagos was sealed. He said other members of his cartel were also in custody including Suleiman and Godwin Edet Mathew.
Babafemi said Salami confessed that he used to import building materials from China to Nigeria and sell gold in South Africa before he ventured into the illicit drug trade about two years ago.
He said Williams, also known as Jantu, was the head of another cartel that operated from 9 Awa Street, Ago Palace, Okota area of Lagos. He said Williams and his wife, Okafor Ifeyinwa Grace, were arrested on Thursday when NDLEA operatives raided their hideout and recovered 27.566 kilogrammes of methamphetamine concealed in a blue box and two sacks, ready for export to Europe and Asia.
He said their Lexus RX350 car with registration number ABJ 512 AY was also impounded during the operation. He said their arrest followed weeks of intelligence gathering about their activities.
Babafemi also said that at the Abuja airport, operatives arrested a drug trafficker, Nwofor Ejiogu Charles, 45, on Friday while he was trying to board Qatar Airways flight QR 1432 to Doha. He said a body scan revealed that he had ingested cocaine. He said he was placed under observation during which he excreted 75 pellets of cocaine weighing 1.653 kgs. He said Nwofor offered to bribe an NDLEA officer with $3,000 to let him go but was turned down.
He said another trafficker, Nwufo Charles Okwudili, 45, was also arrested on Saturday while attempting to board Lufthansa Airlines flight LH 0595 to Paris via Frankfurt. He said a body scan showed that he had swallowed heroin. He said he was taken to a recovery room where he excreted 96 wraps of heroin weighing 1.413 kgs.
Babafemi further said that NDLEA operatives on patrol along Okene-Lokoja-Abuja expressway on Tuesday intercepted a commercial bus coming from Lagos to Kano. He said a search of the bus led to the discovery of four million, eight hundred and eighty thousand US dollars ($4,880,000) and fifty-seven million Céfa (CFA57,000,000) suspected to be counterfeit.
He also said that a Federal High Court in Sokoto presided over by Justice Ahmad Mahmud had sentenced an acting district head, Alhaji Umar Mohammed (aka Dan Bala) to five and a half years in jail.
“In Sokoto, the Federal High Court in the state capital presided over by Justice Ahmad Mahmud has sentenced an acting district head, Alhaji Umar Mohammed (aka Dan Bala) to five and a half years in jail on four counts of possession and dealing in 436.38 kgs cannabis and 7 kgs psychotropic drugs brought against him by NDLEA in October 2022.
“He was convicted and sentenced to two years on each of counts 1 and 2 with an option of a N1 million fine, and eight months on each of counts 3 and 4 without an option of fine.”
Furthermore, “Operatives in Edo state on Wednesday 11th October stormed the Orue forest, Owan West LGA where they arrested Happy Akashili, 37, and Solomon Uwesue, 40, in a hut located inside a cannabis farm measuring 2.367308 hectares which was destroyed, with 92 kgs already processed skunk recovered, while 49 kgs of same substance were also seized at Ogbeturu camp.
“The Commands across the country balanced their drug supply reduction operations with the War Against Drug Abuse, WADA, advocacy campaigns to schools, markets, worship centres and communities.
“Some of these include WADA sensitisation lecture on Drug Use and Mental Health for students of 15 secondary schools in Ibadan metropolis at the University of Ibadan, Oyo state; WADA sensitisation lecture for students of Ascension College, Iworo Imeke, Badagry Lagos; WADA sensitisation lecture at Modern Comprehensive College, Amokwe, Udi LGA, Enugu; WADA sensitisation lecture for students of National Secondary school, Awka; Students of JIBWIS Islamic Science Secondary school, Herwagana, Gombe; students of Government College, Makurdi, Benue; students of Government secondary school (Boys), Kafin Maiyaki, Kano and students of JNI Special Model primary School, Gusau, Zamfara.
“While commending the efforts of the NAIA, MMIA, Kogi, Sokoto and Edo Commands of the Agency as well as the Special Operations Unit targeting the drug cartels, for jobs well done in the past week, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd) assured that officers and men of the Agency will never let down their guards no matter the tricks and distractions orchestrated against it by criminal networks.”
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