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Seven years after escape from prison, NDLEA arrests wanted Abuja drug kingpin-Another nabbed in Ondo

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

By: Michael Mike

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.

Seven years after escape from prison, NDLEA arrests wanted Abuja drug kingpin
-Another nabbed in Ondo

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International

OP-ED: “A RESCUE PLAN FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT”

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OP-ED: “A RESCUE PLAN FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT”

By: Michael Mike

This month, leaders will gather in Sevilla, Spain, on a rescue mission: to help fix how the world invests in sustainable development.

The stakes could not be higher. A decade after the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals and many global commitments to finance them, two-thirds of the targets are lagging. And the world is falling short by over $4 trillion annually in the resources developing countries need to deliver on these promises by 2030.

Meanwhile, the global economy is slowing, trade tensions are rising, aid budgets are being slashed while military spending soars, and international cooperation is under unprecedented strain.

The global development crisis is not abstract. It is measured in families going to bed hungry, children going unvaccinated, girls being forced to drop out of school and entire communities deprived of basic services.

We must correct course. That begins at the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development in Sevilla, where an ambitious, globally supported plan to invest in the Sustainable Development Goals must be adopted.

That plan should include three essential elements.

First, Sevilla must help accelerate the flow of resources to the countries who need it most. Fast.

Countries must be in the driver’s seat, mobilizing domestic resources by strengthening revenue collection and addressing tax evasion, money laundering and illicit financial flows through international cooperation. This would provide much-needed resources to prioritize spending on areas with the greatest impact such as education, healthcare, jobs, social protection, food security, and renewable energy.

At the same time, national development banks, regional and Multilateral Development Banks need to come together to finance major investments.

To support this, the lending capacity of these banks needs to triple so developing countries can better access capital on affordable terms with longer timelines.

This increased access should include re-channeling of unconditional reserve assets — or Special Drawing Rights — to developing countries, preferably through Multilateral Development Banks to multiply their impact.

Private investment is also essential. Resources can be unlocked by making it easier for private finance to support bankable development projects and by promoting solutions that mitigate currency risks and combine public and private finance more effectively.

Throughout, donors must keep their development promises.

Second, we must fix the global debt system. It is unfair and broken.

The current borrowing system is unsustainable, and developing countries have little confidence in it. It’s easy to see why. Debt service is a steamroller crushing development gains, to the tune of more than $1.4 trillion a year. Many governments are forced to spend more on debt payments than on essentials like health and education combined.

Sevilla must result in concrete steps to reduce borrowing costs, facilitate timely debt restructuring for countries burdened by unsustainable debt, and prevent debt crises from unfolding in the first place.

In advance of the conference, a number of countries put forward proposals to ease the debt burden on developing countries. This includes making it easier to pause debt service in times of emergency; establishing a single debt registry to strengthen transparency; and improving how the IMF, World Bank and credit-ratings agencies assess risks in developing countries.

Finally, Sevilla must raise the voice and influence of developing countries in the international financial system so it better serves their needs.

International financial institutions must reform their governance structures to enable greater voice and participation of developing countries in the management of the institutions they depend on.

The world also needs a fairer global tax system, one shaped by all governments — not just the wealthiest and most powerful.

The creation of a “borrowers club” for countries to coordinate their approaches and learn from one another is another promising step toward addressing power imbalances.

The meeting in Sevilla is not about charity. It’s about justice, and building a future in which countries can thrive, build, trade, and prosper together. In our increasingly interconnected world, a future of haves and have-nots is a recipe for even greater global insecurity that will keep weighing down progress for all.

With renewed global commitment and action, Sevilla can spark new momentum to restore a measure of faith in international cooperation and deliver on sustainable development for people and planet.

In Sevilla, leaders must act together to make this rescue mission a success.

OP-ED: “A RESCUE PLAN FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT”

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Crime

Illicit drug consignment packaged as green tea intercepted at Lagos airport

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Illicit drug consignment packaged as green tea intercepted at Lagos airport

By:Michael Mike

No fewer than 66 parcels of Loud, a strong strain of cannabis, packaged as green tea have been intercepted by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the import shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Lagos.

According to the spokesman of the anti-narcotics agency, Femi Babafemi, the seizure made last Thursday was based on credible intelligence received ahead of the arrival of the consignment at the cargo wing of the airport on 11th May.

Babafemi, in the statement issued on Sunday, disclosed that the NDLEA had watch-listed the shipment, and sustained surveillance around it for over three weeks before inviting other stakeholders for a joint examination last Thursday.

He said the Loud consignment weighing 62.2 kilogrammes was concealed inside wraps of green tea that came from Thailand via UAE on an Emirate Airlines flight.

Babafemi said in another operation in Lagos, NDLEA operatives last Monday intercepted a consignment of 1,665 kilogrammes skunk, a strain of cannabis, along Lekki-Ajah expressway. Two suspects: Gidado Ayinde and Obanla Oluwafemi were promptly arrested in connection with the seizure.

In Kaduna, operatives of the state command of NDLEA on patrol along Abuja – Kaduna expressway last Tuesday arrested 29-year-old Goodluck Nnaemeka with 612 bottles of codeine-based syrup and 2,970 pills of flunitrazepam. In another operation same day, a 52-year-old wanted drug dealer Kabiru Musa (a.k.a KB) was arrested at Kurmin Mashi. A total of 25.7 kilogrammes skunk was earlier recovered from his base.
While a total of 9 kilogrammes Loud was recovered from the spare tyre compartment of an Audi station wagon car marked AAA 975 XU driven by Atari Israel, 45, along Auchi road, Edo state, two young women: Favour Joy and Joy Igwe were last Tuesday nabbed at Ikpoba hill area of Benin city. Recovered from them include: 106.57 kilogrammes skunk; 1 kilogramme Loud; 800 grammes Colorado and 302 grammes of methamphetamine.

Babafemi said the War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) social advocacy activities by NDLEA commands equally continued across the country in the past week.

Meanwhile, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (Rtd) while commending the officers and men of MMIA, Lagos, Kaduna, and Edo commands of the agency for the arrests and seizures of the past week, also praised their counterparts in all the commands across the country for pursuing a fair balance between their drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction efforts.

Illicit drug consignment packaged as green tea intercepted at Lagos airport

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News

One year after Allawa’s fall, displaced residents cry for help as humanitarian crisis deepens in Niger

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One year after Allawa’s fall, displaced residents cry for help as humanitarian crisis deepens in Niger

By U.K. Umar

One year after armed attackers overran Allawa community in Shiroro Local Government Area of Niger State, a deepening humanitarian crisis continues to haunt the thousands of people who fled the invasion and now live in makeshift camps with no hope of return.

The silence that hangs over the once-thriving agrarian community of Allawa is not just physical, it is a silence of abandonment, neglect and despair.

Since the violent invasion of April 25, 2024, residents who escaped death have become Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), living in overcrowded primary school buildings, market stalls and half-roofed compounds in neighbouring towns such as Kuta, Erena and Gwada.

Education has been disrupted. Food is uncertain. Healthcare is nearly non-existent. And worse, hope is fading.

At an abandoned block of classrooms now serving as a displacement shelter in Kuta, Zagazola Media Netowork, met Malam Musa Yakubu, a 47-year-old farmer and father of seven. He sat quietly under the shade of a neem tree, surrounded by three of his children, all barefooted and visibly malnourished.

“This place was once my children’s school. Now it is our home,” he said, forcing a smile. “We sleep on broken desks, on bare floor. During rainy nights, we cover ourselves with nylon bags. My wife cries often because she cannot feed our children.”

Malam Yakubu said he grew up in Allawa and owned over 15 hectares of farmland before the invasion. Today, he depends on handouts from well-wishers.

“The last time we received food aid was three months ago. Since then, we have been living on roasted yam and wild leaves. My children have not seen a classroom since we fled.”

Standing nearby was Amina Ibrahim, 16, who said she dropped out of Junior Secondary School following the attack. Now, she spends her days helping her mother hawk groundnuts in Kuta. I want to return to school,” she said quietly. “But how can I go to school when we have no home, no books, and no peace?”

‘My primary school is a ghost town’

For U.K. Umar, a former resident of Allawa and the writer of this report, the tragedy is personal.

“I attended Central Primary School in Allawa, which is now in ruins,” he recalled. “My childhood friends are now scattered across IDP camps. Some lost their parents. Some were taken by the attackers. We were not just displaced. We were forgotten.”

Umar said the displacement was not just the result of one attack, but a culmination of years of insecurity that was never addressed.

“What happened on April 25, 2024, was the final blow. Security agencies left, and armed groups moved in. What followed was a complete collapse of community life. Now, we are a forgotten people.”

Terror in the shadows

Reports from Shiroro LGA suggest that terror groups now control mining activities across several wards including Kurebe, Kwaki and Kushaka. Residents allegethat the attackers collect levies from artisanal gold miners up to N2 million per site every two weeks. Those who fail to comply are barred from mining, while others are punished.

“Their boys come during the day to collect fuel and money. At night, they disappear into the bush. They even settle disputes among locals. It is like a second government,” said a displaced youth who asked not to be named.

Just two weeks ago, five persons were reportedly abducted in Kwanta Yashi. Locals say they fear speaking out, as they are caught between hunger and violence.

‘Even water is a privilege’

In the Erena IDP settlement, Hajia Halima Abdullahi, 60, spoke through tears.

“I used to be a trader. I had goats and chickens. Now, I beg for drinking water. We fetch from a stream one hour away, and sometimes, we boil it. Other times, we drink it raw.”

She said many elderly displaced persons have developed hypertension and respiratory infections due to harsh conditions.

“There are no drugs. No doctors. Sometimes, we use herbs. Our children are falling sick every day.” It was also observed that the camps lack toilets, clean water, mosquito nets, and electricity. In some shelters, more than ten people sleep in one small room.

‘We feel abandoned’

There is growing frustration among displaced residents over what they describe as state government indifference.

“All we hear are promises. No concrete plan. No official has told us when we can return. It is as if our lives no longer matter,” said Ibrahim Zakari, a youth from Allawa now living in Gwada.

He appealed to the Niger State Government and the Federal Government to urgently intervene.
We are Nigerians too. We voted. We paid taxes. We built our homes and schools. Why have we been left to suffer?”

“You cannot keep over 20,000 displaced people in hopeless conditions for over a year and expect stability. Children are out of school. Teenage girls are being married off. Boys are joining vigilante groups. Trauma is spreading like wildfire,” he warned.

He called on the Federal Government to declare a humanitarian emergency in Shiroro LGA and mobilise the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), as well as development partners, to scale up food, water, and shelter support.

“There must be a concrete, time-bound plan for resettlement. These people deserve to go home with safety, dignity, and support.”

Conclusion

One year after the fall of Allawa, the question remains: how long must a people wait?

As Niger State and the Federal Government grapple with rising insecurity, the forgotten people of Allawa continue to live in limbo displaced, distressed, and dangerously ignored.
Their pain is not history. It is ongoing. And unless urgent steps are taken, the crisis may deepen further.

“We have not died,” Malam Musa Yakubu said quietly. “But we are not living either.”

One year after Allawa’s fall, displaced residents cry for help as humanitarian crisis deepens in Niger

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