Crime
NDLEA Officers in Crossfire with Hoodlums in Notorious Edo Hemp Forest
NDLEA Officers in Crossfire with Hoodlums in Notorious Edo Hemp Forest
…3 Operatives Injured, One Undergoes Brain Surgery
By: Michael Mike
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have engaged armed hoodlums in crossfire during a siege on forest warehouses in Opuje community, Owan West local government area of Edo state where drugs to be sold during the forthcoming Yuletide period were stored.
A statement on Thursday from the spokesman of the anti-narcotics agency, Femi Babafemi said the operatives repelled rain of bullets from armed hoodlums who blocked all roads in Opuje community, Owan West local government area of Edo state to prevent the anti-narcotic operatives from accessing the forest warehouses where tons of processed psychoactive substances have been stored for distribution nationwide ahead of the coming Christmas and New Year season.
He noted that this is coming barely 11 months after armed youths recruited by drug barons ambushed NDLEA officers who stormed the community to destroy massive warehouses and tents storing over 317,417 kilogrammes (317.4 metric tons) of cannabis sativa on Wednesday 18th January 2023.
He recalled that at least, three suspects: Omoruan Theophilus, 37; Aigberuan Jacob, 42; Ekeinde Anthony Zaza, 53, and Naomi Patience Ohiewere, 42, were arrested in connection with the drugs then.
Babafemi said Opuje community is notorious for cannabis cultivation, where the cartels invest huge resources, cutting down economic trees of the forest reserves and cultivating cannabis on a large scale, running into hundreds of hectares. After harvest, they build warehouses inside the forest reserves and employ the services of armed youths to protect the warehouses at all time.
He said following credible intelligence that the drug cartels had again stocked their warehouses in the forest to start distribution of the psychoactive substance to various parts of the country ahead of the Yuletide season, teams of NDLEA officers were mobilized to enter the Edo forests and block the distribution of the illicit drug by destroying their warehouses. Some of the warehouses containing about 6,000 kilogrammes of cannabis were first taken down in Ujiogba forest in Esan West LGA last weekend.
He added that the NDLEA teams however came under gunfire attack in the early hours of Monday when they approached the Opuje forest after the armed hoodlums had blocked all access roads in the community. He said the NDLEA operatives were able to exit the area after over two hours of gun fight with the armed hoodlums.
Babafemi said unfortunately, three of the officers were injured in the attack with one of them shot in the head while some of the vehicles used for the operation were riddled with bullets. The affected officers were rushed to the hospital for treatment while the critically injured one had a major surgery on Wednesday to remove the bullets in his brain.
In his reaction to the attack, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of the Agency, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (Retd) warned that those sponsoring attacks on the operatives would know no rest until they are all brought before the law to face the consequences of their action and their criminal trade terminated.
While commending the professional conduct of the officers involved in the operation, Marwa said the incident will not in any way deter the agency from continuing its ongoing offensive action against drug barons and cartels who are merchants of death bent on destroying the lives of innocent citizens especially the youths for their own comfort across the nooks and crannies of the country.
NDLEA Officers in Crossfire with Hoodlums in Notorious Edo Hemp Forest
Three suspects arrested over robbery in Abuja, as police sergeant stabbed
By: Zagazola Makama
The Nigerian Police Force(NPF) FCT Command has arrested three suspects linked to a robbery incident in Mpape that left a police officer injured.
Intelligence sources told Zagazola Makama that on March 11, 2025, at about 3:30 p.m., four robbers on a motorcycle attacked and dispossessed Michael Adewunmi of his Redmi cell phone,and other valuables at Mashafa Village, Mpape.
A police officer, Sergeant Ibritam Inyenetin, attempted to intervene but was stabbed by the robbers.
He was later treated and discharged from Jarel Hospital, Mpape.
Following intelligence reports, police operatives arrested three suspects:
Three suspects arrested over robbery in Abuja, as police sergeant stabbed
Nigerian Drug Kingpin Arrested at El Dorado Airport in Colombia
By: Zagazola Makama
Colombian authorities, in collaboration with the FBI, have arrested a Nigerian national, Joseph Chinedu Okparaejesi, alias Alen, a suspected transnational drug trafficker, at El Dorado International Airport, Bogotá.
Intelligence sources told Zagazola Makama that Okparaejesi, who had been residing in Colombia for over 12 years, was apprehended upon arrival from São Paulo, Brazil, following an intensive investigation led by the Dijín (Colombian police intelligence unit) and the Attorney General’s Office.
The suspect posed as a businessman in the beauty industry but was allegedly coordinating large-scale cocaine shipments to Spain.
Authorities revealed that Okparaejesi financed drug procurement and oversaw operations involving human couriers and specially designed double-bottom suitcases to smuggle narcotics. His arrest was facilitated by intelligence from a detained drug mule en route to Spain, who disclosed details of the Nigerian’s network.
As a result of this breakthrough, 15 other individuals linked to his operations have also been arrested. Investigations indicate that Okparaejesi married a Colombian woman in 2012 at the Nuestra Señora de Fátima parish in Bogotá. He reportedly ran a business dealing in hair extensions, named “Nigeria African,” located near Ciudad de Cali Avenue.
A close associate of the suspect told El Tiempo that the Nigerian rarely left Colombia, traveling to Africa approximately every two years to visit his family. “The last time we spoke, he told us he was in Ghana,” the associate said.
The Colombian National Penitentiary and Prison Institute (INPEC) has confirmed his detention, with charges of drug trafficking, production, and distribution filed against him.
Nigerian Drug Kingpin Arrested at El Dorado Airport in Colombia
Police arrests 72 suspects in raid on criminal hideouts in Abuja
By: Zagazola Makama
The Nigerian Police Force(NPF), FCT Command has arrested 72 suspects in a coordinated raid on criminal hideouts across several divisions in the capital.
Intelligence sources told Zagazola Makama that the operation, conducted on March 12, 2025, at about 10:10 p.m., targeted black spots, uncompleted buildings, and other suspected criminal hideouts within Maitama, Kurudu, Wuse, Karmo, Kubwa, Pegi, and Life Camp Divisions.
Police operatives recovered dried leaves suspected to be Indian hemp and illicit drugs from some of the suspects. Those found guilty after screening will be charged to court.
In a separate development, Operatives of the Wuse Division Police Command have recovered a Beretta pistol and ammunition abandoned by a fleeing suspect during a routine patrol in the early hours of March 12, 2025.
Sources said that at about 4:05 a.m., a police surveillance team intercepted a man carrying a handbag along Ademola Adetokunbo Road, near Eterna Filling Station. The suspect attempted to flee, abandoning his bag before jumping into a stationary Toyota Camry with unknown registration number.
A search of the bag led to the recovery of:
One Beretta pistol, three rounds of 9mm live ammunition and Android phone
The police have launched an investigation to track and apprehend the fleeing suspect.
Police arrests 72 suspects in raid on criminal hideouts in Abuja
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