Crime
NDLEA Arrests Church General Overseer, Theology Student over Dubai-bound meth, skunk
NDLEA Arrests Church General Overseer, Theology Student over Dubai-bound meth, skunk
By Michael Mike
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, have arrested the Founder and General Overseer of Seraphic and Sabbath Assembly, Lagos, High Priest Nnodu Azuka; a student of Emmanuel College of Theology, Samanta, Ibadan, Udezuka Udoka and their freight agent, Oyoyo Mary Obasi over attempt to export methamphetamine and skunk consignments concealed in kegs of palm oil through the NAHCO export shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos to Dubai, United Arab Emirate.
According to a statement on Sunday by the spokesman of the anti-narcotics agency, Femi Babafemi, High Priest Nnodu was arrested last Saturday at his Seraphic and Sabbath Assembly church located at No 1, Sabbath Close, Ijesha area of Lagos following the arrest of two suspects: Oyoyo Obasi and the theology student, Udezuka Udoka last Thursday at the Lagos airport in connection with the seizure of 283 parcels of skunk weighing 14.9 kilogrammes and 204 grammes of methamphetamine concealed in four 25-litre kegs of palm oil for export to Dubai.
Udoka, had in her statement indicted the General Overseer of her new-found church, Nnodu and his son, Chisom Obi, who is now at large as the persons that gave her the consignments for export, alleging that she was compelled to take an oath of secrecy as well as engaged in a sacrifice of chicken in the church while High Priest Nnodu prayed for her for the success of the transaction.
Udoka claimed her church’s GO and son used threats to compel her to take the job after they knew she had known their secrets, adding that High Priest Nnodu was always referring to the illicit drugs as Ice and Bible, (Street names for Methamphetamine and Cannabis) in their telephone text message chats.
The theology student, Udezuka, she said was introduced to her to assist because she was new in the illicit business.
On interrogation, Udezuka said he was paid N2 million for his role and had to do it because he needed the money for his education.
Another attempt to send a consignment of skunk and tramadol 225mg to the UAE by a Dubai-returnee, Nnamani Innocent was also frustrated by the NDLEA operatives following his arrest at Trade Fair complex in Ojo area of Lagos, where he had gone in company of his friend Nwanana Ikechukwu with the cargo to a freight company to process the consignment for export last Tuesday.
In the same vein, NDLEA operatives attached to the SAHCO export shed of the Lagos airport on the same day intercepted a cargo going to London, United Kingdom.
In the consignment containing food items packed in a carton, the four walls of the carton were used to conceal 1.1 kilogrammes of methamphetamine while the freight agent, Agholor Emmanuel, who presented the cargo for export was immediately arrested.
Also, NDLEA operatives last Tuesday intercepted a consignment of 1,340 kilogrammes of cannabis sativa coming from Ogbese, Ondo state in a liquified natural gas truck to Okurikang Okoyong in Odukpani local government area of Cross River State.
Babafemi said following credible intelligence, the movement was monitored for three weeks and upon arrival, 130 bags of cannabis weighing 1.430 tons were recovered from the LNG truck and 13 motorcycles which were hired by the cartel to convey the consignment deep into the forest.
In Kano, four suspects: Ado Shuaibu; Yahaya Shuaibu; Mamman Sani and Umar Yakubu were arrested in connection with the seizure of 229 blocks of skunk weighing 131.1 kilogrammes, while Umar was arrested last Tuesday at Tumfafi village, Kano. The trio of Ado, Yahaya and Mamman were nabbed last Saturday at Garin Balarabe, Maigatari, Jigawa state in a follow up operation.
Another suspect, Aisha Muhammad was arrested in Koki area of Kano with 17 kilogrammes cannabis.
Babafemi said no fewer than four members of a syndicate using dispatch motorcycles to distribute illicit drugs in Lekki area of Lagos were arrested on Sunday 5th February. They include: Tijani Oladapo; Eric Maku; Ahmed Olamide and Adobi Fortune. He said at the time of their arrest, 1.88 kilogrammes of Loud and assorted paraphernalia were recovered from them.
He added that 79.1 kilogrammes skunk were seized during a raid in Patey area of Lagos Island last Tuesday by NDLEA operatives, and a total of 2,370.06 kilogrammes of cannabis and two boats seized at a jetty in Lagos by men of Civil Defence Corps were handed over to the Lagos command of the agency.
Meanwhile, in his reaction to the arrests and seizures of the past week, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (Retd) commended the officers, men and women of the MMIA, Cross River, Kano, and Lagos commands for their commitment and professionalism towards ridding Nigeria of the menace of illicit drugs. He however said the agency will continue to target anyone or group involved in the criminal trade without fear or favour even as he urged all NDLEA officers across the country to remain unrelenting in the pursuit of the corporate goal.
Crime
NIDCOM Gets 17 Trafficked Girls Rescued, 5 Traffickers Arrested in Ghana
NIDCOM Gets 17 Trafficked Girls Rescued, 5 Traffickers Arrested in Ghana
By: Michael Mike
Seventeen young Nigerian girls trafficked to Ghana have been rescued and repatriated back to the country while five traffickers were equally arrested.
This latest rescue operation brought to 130 girls repatriated back to Nigeria from Ghana alone since July 2024.
According to a statement signed on Sunday by the Director, Media, Public Relations and Protocols Unit, Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM). Abdur-Rahman Balogun, this was sequel to the combined and coordinated efforts of the Ghanaian Anti-Human Trafficking Police, Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation (NIDO) Ghana, and the Nigerian High Commission in Accra.
Speaking on this latest efforts, Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Chairman/CEO NiDCOM, expressed her gratitude to Nigeria’s First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu for her support in facilitating the safe return of the young girls back to the country.
She also commended the vital roles played by the BOT Chairman of NIDO Ghana, Chief Callistus Elozieuwa,, and the Ghanaian Anti-Human Trafficking Police Unit in bringing the traffickers to justice.
She reiterated NiDCOM’s commitment to protecting Nigerians in the diaspora under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which gave priority to combating human trafficking and safeguarding the rights of Nigerian citizens at home and in the Diaspora.
Balogun, in the statement, stated that the rescued young girls, ages 18 to 29 years, come from various states, including Anambra, Abia, Akwa Ibom, Rivers, Imo, Edo, and Ebonyi.
He said they were lured to Ghana under false promises of employment but were instead forced into exploitative situations and bound by an oath of secrecy.
Dabiri-Erewa expressed her determination to the rescue of those still trafficked in conjuction with various stakeholders, noting that many more trafficked Nigerians are still awaiting rescue.
Director of the Anti-Human Trafficking Unit of the Ghana Police Service, Mr. Williams Ayaregah praised NiDCOM’s efforts under Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa’s leadership.
He said: “More than ever, traffickers must realise that Ghana is no longer a safe haven.”
The operation, conducted in Kpone Katamanso, Tema, resulted in one of the largest single- operation arrests, with five traffickers apprehended.
Mr. Akinboye Akinsola, representing NiDCOM, played a critical role in escorting the rescued women back to Nigeria, where they were handed over to the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) for rehabilitation and reintegration.
Chief Callistus Elozieuwa added that two young men were also repatriated, including one who was previously detained in Ghanaian prison.
With NIDO Ghana’s assistance, the young man underwent rehabilitation and has now returned to his home state, Anambra, for family reintegration.
This cross-national effort underscores NiDCOM’s dedication to eradicating human trafficking and highlights the importance of international collaboration to protect Nigerians abroad.
NIDCOM Gets 17 Trafficked Girls Rescued, 5 Traffickers Arrested in Ghana
Crime
NDLEA intercepts US, Europe-bound drugs in shoe soles, N16.7 billion opioids at seaports
NDLEA intercepts US, Europe-bound drugs in shoe soles, N16.7 billion opioids at seaports
By: Michael Mike
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have intercepted at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos and three courier companies in the state consignments of opioids concealed in soles of shoes and hair attachments heading to the United States, United Kingdom and Cyprus.
The spokesman of the anti-narcotics agency, Femi Babafemi in a statement on Sunday said a total of 2,118 pills of tramadol concealed in soles of 13 pairs of shoes going to Cyprus were seized at the export shed of the Lagos airport on 12th October 2024 and additional 380 tablets were recovered from the home of the sender, Okenwa Uchenna during a follow up operation in Enugu last Thursday. He added that a cash of N968,880 and a Toyota Avalon car marked UWN 389 AS, were also recovered from the suspect at the time of his arrest.
Babafemi said not less than 293 ampoules of promethazine and pentazocine injection as well as 1.69 kilogrammes cannabis and tramadol tablets concealed in hair attachments and soles of shoes going to the United States, United Kingdom and Oman were intercepted at three courier firms by NDLEA officers of the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation, DOGI, in Lagos last Thursday.
He said in the same vein, a total of 26,250,000 pills of tramadol as well as 508,400 bottles of codeine based syrup worth about N16.7 billion in street value were intercepted by NDLEA operatives during 100 percent joint examination of watch-listed containers with men of Customs Service and other security agencies at the Tincan port in Lagos and Port Harcourt port, Onne, Rivers state both last Tuesday and Wednesday.
Babafemi said other illicit consignments intercepted during the joint inspection of the containers include 10 million tablets of Toradol Benzhexol and 28 plastic drums of methamphetamine weighing 700 kilogrammes at Tincan and Onne ports respectively, while 56 parcels of Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis weighing 28 kilogrammes were also recovered from a container that arrived the Lagos port from Canada.
He said a suspect, Tsolaye Eburajolo, 40, was arrested at Ago Palace area of Okota Lagos in connection with the cannabis seizure while a bribe of N10 million paid NDLEA officers to free the suspect has been kept as part of the exhibits for the prosecution of the case.
Meanwhile, NDLEA operatives in Lagos last Friday raided the Igbo – Igunuko shrine, located at the Alfa Beach, Ajah, where jumbo bags of Ghanaian Loud, a strain of cannabis, weighing 2,760 kilogrammes were recovered and two suspects: Gbenga Abiodun and Sunday Abiodun arrested. Another suspect, Ademola Oyelakin was also arrested same day with 770 kilogrammes of the same psychoactive substance along Lagos-Ibadan expressway.
He said a total of 11,786 pills of tramadol, molly, rohypnol and diazepam as well as 64 bottles of codeine syrup were recovered from the underground storage, a suspect, Muhammad Abdullahi dug in his bedroom at Marwa Coastal road, Lekki Phase 1 Lagos when NDLEA officers raided his home last Friday. He noted that the suspect dug the illicit drug storage deep in his room, covered it with padlocked iron slate, a rug and then put his mattress on top to avoid detection.
In Plateau state, a suspect Fadan Bindom, 39, was arrested at Pilgani village in possession of 65.85 kilogrammes cannabis and 18 grammes of tramadol, while another suspect Sunday Agbata, 42, was nabbed at Pavwei – Rayfield Jos South local government area with 5,830 tablets and ampoules of bromazepam, diazepam and pentazocine injection last Wednesday.
The spokesman said a major distributor of illicit drugs in FCT Abuja, Umar Muhammed, 40, was last Monday nabbed following the earlier seizure of a consignment of 198.5 kilogrammes cannabis linked to him at Wuse market park.
In Edo state, NDLEA operatives recovered 640 kilogrammes cannabis concealed in 80 jumbo bags of fresh vegetables at Ewu junction, Irrua, Esan Central local government area and arrested a suspect, Austin Oruamen, 27, while another suspect Adereti Kazeem, 35, was nabbed with 200 blocks of cannabis weighing 133 kilogrammes at Obalayan, Ile-Ife, Osun state last Thursday.
He noted that with the same vigour, commands and formations of the agency across the country continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitization activities to schools, worship centres, work places and communities among others in the past week.
Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (Rtd) while commending the officers and men of MMIA, Tincan, PHPC, Lagos, FCT, Osun, Plateau and Edo commands of the agency as well as those of DOGI for the arrests and seizures, stated that their operational successes and those of their compatriots across the country especially their balanced approach to drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction efforts are well appreciated.
NDLEA intercepts US, Europe-bound drugs in shoe soles, N16.7 billion opioids at seaports
Crime
Bobrisky Arrested by NIS at Seme Border
Bobrisky Arrested by NIS at Seme Border
By: Michael Mike
The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has apprehended Idris Okuneye popularly known as Bobrisky while trying to cross the border into Republic of Benin.
The Service in a statement on Monday signed by its Public Relations Officer, Kenneth Udo said: “In keeping with its commitment to securing the borders, Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) intercepted Okuneye Idris Olarenwaju otherwise known as Bobrisky at the Seme Border over an attempt to Exit the Country.”
Udo added that: “The Service wishes to inform the public that Okuneye Idris is a person of interest over recent issues of public concern.
“He is undergoing interrogation and will be handed over to the appropriate Authorities for further action.
“The Service assures the public that it will continue to be civil and professional in its statutory responsibility of manning the Country’s Borders.”
Bobrisky Arrested by NIS at Seme Border
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