Crime
NDLEA Impounds Spain-bound Cocaiine Consignment
NDLEA Impounds Spain-bound Cocaiine Consignment
By: Michael Mike
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have saved Spain from getting 1.2 kilogrammes of cocaine smuggled into it via the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos.
According to a statement by the spokesman of the anti-narcotics agency, Femi Babafemi, the success was recorded when a Spain based businessman, 50-year-old Francis Akajiobi, was arrested by operatives at the departure hall of Terminal 2 of the airport after parcels of cocaine weighing 1.20 kilogrammes were discovered in his pair of sandals while attempting to board a Royal Air Maroc flight to Madrid, Spain.
Babafemi said the two parcels of cocaine were concealed in the soles of a pair of black sandals Akajiobi was wearing to board his flight when NDLEA operatives intercepted him last Thursday, and during his preliminary interrogation, he claimed the consignment was delivered to him at a bar in Port Harcourt, Rivers state and was to deliver it to his friend and neighbour in Spain for a fee of €5,000 upon successful delivery to the recipient.
In other clampdowns during the week, Makinde Lekan was arrested in connection with the seizure of 99 parcels of Canadian Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis weighing 51.6 kilogrammes that arrived the SAHCO Imports shed of the Lagos airport on a Turkish Airlines flight from Canada via Istanbul, Turkey.
Operatives of the Special Operations Unit of the agency targeting syndicates that specialize in shipping large consignments of opioids into neighbouring countries from where they attempt smuggling them into Nigeria in smaller quantities through transport companies, have arrested one of the kingpins, Chukwuemaka Obodozie.
Obodozie was arrested in the early hours of Sunday 21st July at Cele bus stop along Oshodi-Apapa express road, Lagos with 100,000 tablets of tramadol 225mg loaded in two bags shortly after his arrival from Ghana via one of the transport companies plying the Lagos-Ghana route. The success followed an intelligence led operation which involved five months of surveillance around the accused.
No fewer than 17 suspects were arrested on Friday 26th July when NDLEA operatives raided the Owena forest in Oriade local government area of Osun State, where they destroyed 31,250 kilogrammes of cannabis on 12.5 hectares of farmland, while 84 kilogrammes of processed cannabis sativa was recovered along with a single barrel Dane gun.
Those arrested in connection with the crime include: Peter Osuya, 51; Zebron Ode, 46; Dogo Matthew, 35; Isaac Terna; Joseph Lawrence, 27; Ugochukwu Victory, 24; Olamilekan Abolarin, 26; Dele Ayibo, 44; Ojo Moses, 21; Nini Ayila, 27; Msughve Clement, 23; Chuks Ogeneku, 40; Dada Aribo, 20; Uche Endurance, 30; Patrick Agba, 21; Osakwe Kennedy, 45; and Ojo Babatunde, 29.
In Kaduna state, NDLEA operatives on stop and search patrol along Kaduna-Zaria highway on Saturday 27th July intercepted a 32-year-old lady, Ubaida Aliyu in possession of 573 rounds of 7.60 live ammunition, which she claimed she was attempting to deliver to bandits in Sokoto, while a suspect, Godwin Udochukwu, 35, was arrested in connection with the seizure of 25,000 ampoules of Pentazocine injection by NDLEA operatives on patrol along Kaduna-Zaria highway, another suspect, Alkasim Mikailu, 35, was nabbed in Kano on a follow up operation following the seizure of 37,880 ampoules of Diazepam injection along Abuja-Kaduna highway.
Two suspects: Abioye Adeniyi, 39, and Rafiu Lekan, 41, were arrested with 55 jumbo wraps of Ghana Loud by NDLEA operatives at Oloko along Badagry-Seme road, Lagos last Friday 26th July, while Samson Egwutouhi, 30, was nabbed same day by officers on patrol along Okene-Lokoja-Abuja expressway with 20 blocks of compressed cannabis sativa that weighed 10.5 kilogrammes. In Bauchi State, two suspects: Suleiman Yahaya, 50, and Ibrahim Bello (a.k.a Special), 35, were last Thursday arrested with 315 blocks of cannabis sativa weighing 204.75 kilogrammes along Maiduguri bye-pass, Bauchi town.
Babafemi said with the same drive, commands and formations of the agency across the country continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitization activities in schools, worship centres, work places and communities among others in the past week.
Meanwhile, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (Rtd) while commending the officers and men of the Special Operations Unit, MMIA, Osun, Bauchi, Kogi, Seme, and Kaduna commands for the arrests and seizures, praised their pulverizing onslaught against drug cartels across the country.
He also expressed delight in the balance of their drug supply reduction efforts with drug demand reduction activities while urging them not to rest on their oars.
NDLEA Impounds Spain-bound Cocaiine Consignment
Troops rescue kidnapped woman in Taraba
By: Zagazola Makama
Troops of Sub-Sector 3B, Operation Whirl Stroke (OPWS), have rescued a kidnapped woman during a search-and-rescue operation in Takum Local Government Area of Taraba.
Sources told Zagazola Makama that the troops, deployed at Kufai Amadu in Takum LGA, received information at about 1:13 p.m. on Friday about a kidnapping incident at Torikegha village, Chanchanji Ward.
The source said the troops immediately moved to the village, where they were informed that the victim, Mrs Iloda Ayinba, a resident of Torikegha, had been abducted while on her way to her farm by suspected herdsmen relocating from the area.
According to the source, the troops pursued the suspects along their withdrawal route and conducted an extensive combing of the general area up to the power line corridor between Benue and Taraba states.
“Following the aggressive and robust search-and-rescue operation, the kidnappers abandoned the victim in the bush and fled,” the source said.
The troops subsequently rescued the woman, while no contact was made with the suspects during the exploitation of the area, the source added.
Troops rescue kidnapped woman in Taraba
Four children killed in Barkin Ladi reprisal attack as Plateau tensions escalate
By: Zagazola Makama
Four children were killed on Thursday in a reprisal attack allegedly carried out by armed Fulani herdsmen in Dorong village, Foron District of Barkin Ladi Local Government Area of Plateau State, amid rising tensions following recent attacks on herders and cattle rustling in the area.
The victims were identified as Precious Joshuah, 17; Isa’ac Joshuah, 9; Mary Joshuah, 7; and Eve Sambo, 3.
Sources told Zagazola Makama that the attack occurred less than 48 hours after coordinated assaults on pastoral communities in Barkin Ladi, Jos East and Riyom LGAs, during which no fewer than 168 cattle were rustled and several others poisoned.
Zagazola reports that on Wednesday evening, Militia from plateau rustled 137 cattle around Nding community in Fan District of Barkin Ladi LGA, while another 34 cattle were driven away from Kukukah community in Jos East LGA, with only three later returning.
Less than 24 hours later, nine cows reportedly died after grazing on poisoned substances around Kwi village in Riyom LGA, further heightening tension across the affected areas.
A community leader in Foron District, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the Dorong attack was carried out in the early hours of Thursday.
“The atmosphere has been tense since the cattle rustling incidents. People have been living in fear, warning that reprisals were imminent if nothing was done. Sadly, those fears have now materialised,” the source said.
Security sources confirmed the incident, adding that troops and other security operatives had been deployed to the area to prevent further escalation and restore calm.
We therefore renewed calls on the Plateau State Government and concerned security agencies to urgently intervene, arrest perpetrators on all sides, and address the underlying causes of the recurring violence.
Zagazola warned that without decisive action, including accountability for cattle rustling, livestock poisoning and retaliatory attacks, Plateau State risks sinking deeper into another cycle of reprisals that continues to claim innocent lives, particularly women and children.
As of the time of filing this report, authorities were yet to issue an official statement on the Dorong incident.
Four children killed in Barkin Ladi reprisal attack as Plateau tensions escalate
Troops neutralise three suspected kidnappers in Kaduna
By: Zagazola Makama
Troops of the Joint Task Force Operation Enduring Peace have neutralised three suspected kidnappers during a raid on their hideout in Bakin Kogi, Jema’a Local Government Area of Kaduna State.
Zagazola gathered the operation, carried out on 11 December, was part of intensified efforts to clear criminal elements from the Joint Operations Area ahead of the yuletide celebrations.
The troops came under fire as they approached the hideout, but responded with superior firepower, overwhelming the armed gang.
Sources said the troops later conducted a sweep of the area and discovered the corpses of three suspected kidnappers neutralised during the exchange.
According to the source, the suspects were identified as members of a notorious syndicate responsible for multiple abductions and attacks on commuters along the Dangoma–Godogodo axis of Jema’a LGA.
He added that troops had launched follow-up operations to track down fleeing members of the group and dismantle their remaining networks.
The operation, he said, reflected the military’s sustained push to enhance security within Kaduna State and neighbouring areas.
Troops neutralise three suspected kidnappers in Kaduna
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