Crime
NDLEA Declares Ex-Beauty Queen Wanted for Dealing in Illicit Drugs

NDLEA Declares Ex-Beauty Queen Wanted for Dealing in Illicit Drugs
… Arrests Brazil Returnee Who Excretes 60 Wraps of Cocaine
By: Michael Mike
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has declared an
ex-beauty queen, Ms. Aderinoye Queen Christmas also known as Ms. Queen Oluwadamilola Aderinoye wanted over allegations of dealing in illicit drug.
The spokesman of the anti-narcotics agency, Femi Babafemi in a statement on Sunday said the ex beauty pageant was declared wanted by after she escaped from her Lekki, Lagos residence when NDLEA operatives raided her apartment at Oral Estate, Lekki last Wednesday.
He said the raid followed credible intelligence she deals in illicit substances, adding that the suspect was Miss Commonwealth Nigeria Culture 2015/2016 and founder of Queen Christmas Foundation.
Babafemi disclosed that recovered from her home during the search witnessed by the estate officials include 606 grammes of Canadian Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis, an electronic weighing scale, large quantities of drugs packing plastics, a black RAV 4 SUV marked Lagos KSF 872 GQ, and her picture frame among others.
In other roll call of clampdowns during the week, Babafemi said operatives of the agency have arrested a Brazil returnee, Udechukwu Theophilus at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos for ingesting 60 big wraps of cocaine.
According to him, the suspect who was arrested during inward clearance of passengers on Ethiopian Airlines flight from Sao Paulo, Brazil via Addis Ababa, Ethiopia at the D-Arrival Hall of the Lagos airport on Sunday 21st January 2024, initially refused to undergo body scan, raising health concerns in a desperate bid to evade arrest.

Babafemi said when the suspect was offered other options, he accepted to be placed on excretion observation and shortly after he was ushered into NDLEA observatory, he excreted the first set of cocaine pellets, after which he expelled a total of 60 wraps of the class A drug weighing 1.279 kilogrammes in five excretions.
Udechukwu, in his statement, claimed he ingested the consignment in Brazil and was to discharge everything at the airport in Addis Ababa but could only excrete 15 pellets which he handed over to another member of his syndicate before his connecting flight to Nigeria was called.
The spokesman said in the same vein, NDLEA operatives at the Lagos airport last Tuesday recovered a total of 12 cartons of tramadol 225mg containing 599,900 pills weighing 385.4 kilogrammes from an overstayed cargo at the SAHCO import shed of the Lagos airport after a joint examination with other agencies.
He said the tramadol consignment had come into the country in two batches on KLM Royal Dutch Airline flights from Karachi, Pakistan between 27th July and 1st August 2023. They were however placed under watch by NDLEA operatives since then.
Babafemi said not less than 822 kilogrammes of cannabis sativa hidden in a fuel station located at Ashipa community along Badagry-Seme road were recovered by operatives of the Seme Special Area Command of NDLEA, while a suspect Sani Audu, 35, was arrested with 111.3 kilogrammes of same substance at Maigatari town in Jigawa State last Tuesday.
In Yobe state, two suspects: Mohammed Usman and Adamu Ma’azu were arrested last Saturday with 49 blocks of cannabis sativa weighing 50 kilogrammes at Damaturu motor park, Damaturu, while the duo of Paul Obor, 38, and Dennis Fuokorighe, 48, who were arrested last Wednesday at a Navy check point, Itobe, Ofu local government area, Kogi state with 318 compressed blocks of cannabis sativa weighing 190.8 kilogrammes concealed in a gold colour Honda Accord Car marked RBC 449AE, were handed over to the Kogi state command of the agency last Friday by men of the Nigeria Navy Ship, Lugard, Lokoja.
In Kano, a suspect, Shamwilu Idris, 29, was arrested at Gadar Tamburawa area last Thursday with 271 kilogrammes cannabis following the seizure of an abandoned 28.1 kilogrammes of same substance at Rijiyar Lemo area of the state last Wednesday. Another suspect, Abubakar Haruna Salisu, 24, was nabbed at Kotun Wambai, Yan Awaki area of Kano last Friday with 600 bottles of codeine-based syrup while a total of 1,306 blocks of cannabis weighing 886 kilogrammes seized by the Police at Kwanar Dangora, area of the state were transferred to the agency last Wednesday.
A total of 87 compressed blocks of cannabis sativa weighing 73 kilogrammes as well as 21,346 pills of tramadol and 3,800 tablets of diazepam were recovered from a suspect, Musa Galadima last Friday when his DAF truck marked GME 971 XD was intercepted at Lafiyawo, along Gombe – Bauchi road by NDLEA operatives. In Plateau state, Aminu Ubanta, 35, was nabbed last Saturday with 5.355 kilogrammes cannabis at Layin Zana area of Jos.
Babafemi, also disclosed that two members of an international drug trafficking syndicate: Sunday Owoborode, 52, and Valentine Anene were arrested last Thursday at Edu Orita, Ogun state where Valentine was being prepared to travel with some drugs to Qatar same day on board a Qatar airline flight from Lagos.
He said at the time of their arrest, 1.8 kilogrammes cannabis, electronic weighing scale and other illicit substances were found on them.
Meanwhile, in another interdiction operation by operatives in Lagos, a 50-year-old Sunday Adediran, was arrested last Wednesday with 20 kilogrammes cannabis sativa found in one of the rooms in his house at Mushin Olosha, Lagos State.
He noted that the various commands of the agency across the country
continued with the War Against Drug Abuse, WADA, advocacy campaign in the past week.
The Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (Retd) has commended his men for a great job in the course of the week while also applauding commands across the country for intensifying their WADA advocacy lectures, and thus creating a balance between their drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction activities.
NDLEA Declares Ex-Beauty Queen Wanted for Dealing in Illicit Drugs
Crime
NDLEA Recovers Cocaine, Loud from Microwaves, Lipsticks at Lagos Airport, Nabs Wanted Drug Kingpin

NDLEA Recovers Cocaine, Loud from Microwaves, Lipsticks at Lagos Airport, Nabs Wanted Drug Kingpin
By: Michael Mike
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have intercepted parcels of Loud, a strong strain of cannabis concealed in microwaves imported from Thailand and wraps of cocaine built into ladies’ lipsticks going to Guinea at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.
The spokesman of the anti-narcotics agency, Femi Babafemi in a statement on Sunday, said the Loud consignment was part of a consolidated cargo that came in two tranches on an Ethiopian Airlines flight from Bangkok, Thailand through Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
He said based on credible intelligence, the cargo was subjected to thorough search during which 23 parcels of loud weighing 11.3 kilogrammes concealed in new microwaves were recovered last Monday, disclosing that a suspect Ezenwegbu Chike has been arrested in connection with the seizure.
He noted that barely a week after a total of 420 grammes of cocaine factory fitted in 84 pieces of female lipsticks heading to the UK were seized at a courier company in Lagos, NDLEA operatives at the export shed of the Lagos airport have intercepted another consignment of cocaine built into ladies’ lipsticks as part of a cargo containing hair attachments, face powder, and other items heading to Malabo, Guinea.
Babafemi said no less than 400 grammes of cocaine and phenacetine, a cutting agent, were recovered from the lipsticks when dismantled while a businessman at the Trade Fair Complex, Ojo area of Lagos, Ezeikwelume Afam was arrested last Friday in connection with the seizure.
The spokesman said a notorious drug kingpin Okechukwu Izugha (a.k.a Okey Omeogo) has been arrested in Lagos by operatives of a Special Operations Unit of NDLEA after 12 months of going into hiding. He was nabbed last Wednesday at his wife’s shop in Ijesha market.
He said Izugha came under NDLEA radar on 7th August 2024 after a 9 kilogrammes cocaine was recovered from a suspect Obiora Agudosi at a motor park in Orile, Lagos while going to deliver the consignment in the southeast. Izugha was identified as the owner of the seized drug.
Babafemi said in the course of investigating the kingpin and his network, his wife Maureen Izugha was arrested with 500 grammes of cocaine at her beverages store in Ijesha market on 21st January 2025. She was thereafter arraigned in court, convicted and sentenced to two years imprisonment.
Unknown Izugha that NDLEA was still on his trail, he came out of his hiding and was promptly arrested last Wednesday.
Babafemi said in Edo state, no fewer than 28,054.053 kilogrammes of skunk, a local strain of cannabis, were destroyed on three farms measuring over 11 hectares at Ewere Uzebba forest in Owan West local government area last Tuesday, while 82 kilogrammes of already processed cannabis was recovered from the location.
He disclosed that the NDLEA operatives who went for the operation however came under gun attack from armed members of the cartel on their way out of the forest. They were able to repel the attack and came out unhurt while one of their operational vehicles was riddled with bullets.
In Lagos, 1,400 compressed blocks of Ghana Loud, a strain of cannabis, weighing 700 kilogrammes and a Ford delivery truck marked JJJ 698 YJ were recovered at Okun -Ajah Beach, while two suspects: Innocent Ejidiobo and Friday Paul were nabbed along Ajah -Epe expressway by NDLEA operatives last Friday.
Recovered from them include: 26 kilogrammes Ghana Loud, 123 grammes of methamphetamine and 45 grammes of Molly as well as their delivery van with registration number AJK 191 LG.
NDLEA operatives in Borno state on Saturday arrested Godwin Nwaobi, 42, with 18,759 ampoules of pentazocine, pills of tramadol and rohypnol at Njimtilo, Maiduguri, coming on the heels of the seizure of 10,000 pills of tramadol from another suspect Abdulrahman Ahmadu, 34, last Wednesday, their counterparts in Gombe state recovered a total of 116,226 pills of tramadol and D-5 from five suspects: Hafiz Bello, 22; Isah Suleman, 48; Kabiru Muhammed, 30; Abdullahi Adamu, 30; and Abel Murna, 25, at Gombe main market and along Gombe-Kano road last Tuesday and last Saturday.
A suspect, Sabiu Bala was last Thursday arrested along Okene-Lokoja expressway in Kogi state while conveying 316.6 kilogrammes skunk, while another suspect Haladu Suleiman, 38, was nabbed by NDLEA operatives with 58.805 kilogrammes of same substance in Gubuchi area of Ikara local government area, Kaduna state.
In Taraba state, three suspects: Auwal Ibrahim, 30; Lukman Ibrahim, 18; and Hamza Adamu, 25, were on Saturday arrested by NDLEA officers at Lanka Viri checkpoint while conveying 577,890 pills of opioids and 1.16 kilogrammes skunk concealed in tyre compartment of a petrol tanker marked MUB 334 YH. The arrest of the trio last Tuesday, according to Babafemi, followed credible intelligence.
He said three other suspects: Shamsudini Abdullahi, 35; Adamu Abdullahi,21; and Magaji Rabo, 26, were nabbed with 48.1 kilogrammes skunk at Janguza barracks area of Kano state by NDLEA operatives last Wednesday.
He noted that 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, SOU, Edo, Lagos, Taraba, Kano, Kogi, Gombe, Borno and kaduna commands of the agency for the arrests and seizures of the past week, equally 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.
NDLEA Recovers Cocaine, Loud from Microwaves, Lipsticks at Lagos Airport, Nabs Wanted Drug Kingpin
Crime
Massacre in Karta: Suspected EIGS militants kill 11 civilians shortly after military withdrawal in Niger Republic

Massacre in Karta: Suspected EIGS militants kill 11 civilians shortly after military withdrawal in Niger Republic
By: Zagazola Makama
At least 11 civilians were brutally killed in Karta village, Téra Department of Tillabéri Region, Niger Republic, in a fresh attack allegedly carried out by suspected Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (EIGS) militants, shortly after the withdrawal of a military detachment from the area.
Zagazola gathered that the attack occurred on Thursday, July 11, at about 6:00 p.m., barely 15 minutes after Nigerien troops vacated the area.
Sources said the assailants arrived on the same road used by the military convoy during their departure, suggesting a possible overlap or close proximity.
“They arrived just after the soldiers had left. On the same road. They weren’t stopped. They opened fire. They killed. And no one came back,” a local resident said.
No exchange of gunfire reportedly occurred between the soldiers and the attackers. Residents allege that the terrorists passed unhindered, and no security response followed the gunshots that echoed through the village during the massacre.
The victims have been identified as: Seydou Kango, Ali Alhadey, Fataou Oudou, Yacouba Karidjo, Abass Hamadou, Soumana Hamadou Sabbou, Ginda Tondi, Souleymane Yéyio, Mohamed Seydou Abdul and two others of Tara Bango Banda origin, yet to be formally identified.
Tillabéri region has in recent months become a hotspot for jihadist violence, with EIGS fighters regularly launching deadly raids on villages such as Mehana, Fanbita, Kokorou, and Satchirbangou.
The continuous attacks have fueled a deepening distrust among citizens, many of whom now accuse the military-led junta of abandoning them to terrorists.
Despite repeated assurances of improved security by Niger’s ruling military authorities, civilians across the region say they feel unprotected and betrayed.
Tillabéri region sits at the tri-border area of Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso, where jihadist insurgencies linked to the Islamic State and al-Qaeda have continued to destabilize communities and challenge state authority.
Massacre in Karta: Suspected EIGS militants kill 11 civilians shortly after military withdrawal in Niger Republic
Crime
Three killed in communal clash between Garun-Gabas and Yakila communities in Niger

Three killed in communal clash between Garun-Gabas and Yakila communities in Niger
By: Zagazola Makama
Atleast three persons were killed following a violent communal clash between Garun-Gabas and Yakila communities in Rafi Local Government Area of the state.
It was gathered that the clash erupted on Friday during a reconciliation meeting convened by the District Head of Yakila at his palace to address lingering tensions between the two communities.
The crisis began when a youth from Garun-Gabas, who came to attend the peace meeting, was attacked by some youths from Yakila. Policemen stationed at the Yakila Outstation intervened and rescued the victim.
However, the situation quickly escalated into a full-blown clash, as youths from Yakila turned on the security personnel and attempted to set fire to a military Armoured Personnel Carrier (APC).
Military reinforcements from Garun-Gabas and Tegina were deployed to restore order, but in the ensuing violence, two individuals – Adamu Yola of Garun-Gabas and Alhaji Samaila Suleman of Yakila – were killed.
Another victim, identified as Abdu, popularly known as “Pure Water,” collapsed during the incident and was rushed along with another injured individual, Yahaya Lala of Yakila, to Dr. Frank Clinic in Tegina. Abdu was later confirmed dead, bringing the total number of fatalities to three.
Police sources say that the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Kagara, alongside a patrol team and 12 Police Mobile Force operatives from Tegina, moved to the area and succeeded in bringing the situation under control.
The corpses were released to their families for burial in accordance with Islamic rites after they declined post-mortem examinations.
The Command said surveillance and monitoring efforts have been intensified in the affected areas to prevent further breakdown of law and order.
End
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