Connect with us

Uncategorized

Wanted drug baron behind 4 cocaine shipments to Saudi Arabia, Qatar arrested

Published

on

Wanted drug baron behind 4 cocaine shipments to Saudi Arabia, Qatar arrested

By: Michael Mike

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have taken into custody a wanted drug baron, Alhaji Suleiman Aremu (a.k.a Barryshine) two years after coming under the radar of the anti-narcotics agency.

Suleiman who is the Managing Director/CEO of Barryshine Suleiman Nigeria Ltd, according to a statement on Friday by the spokesman of the NDLEA, Femi Babafemi came under the agency’s watchlist over his alleged role in four foiled attempts to export cocaine to Saudi Arabia and Qatar through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos between 2022 and 2024.

Babafemi said the alleged drug baron, name first featured on November 13, 2022, when a female passenger on Qatar airlines flight to Saudi Arabia, Alhaja Ajisegiri Sidika was arrested at the MMIA in possession of 400 grammes of cocaine, which was concealed inside female footwears.

He said investigations later revealed that one Abdullahi Ramon, who is a brother to Suleiman hired the arrested drug courier, with further facts subsequently emerging that the flight tickets and other travel expenses of the suspect were sourced by Alhaji Suleiman Aremu.

Babafemi said a few days after the arrest of Ajisegiri Sidika, another drug mule, Lawal Oyenuga was arrested on November 24, 2022, with the same quantity of cocaine, 400 grammes, concealed in male footwears while going to the same destination, Saudi Arabia.

The suspect, Lawal Oyenuga on his arrest and interrogation, confessed that one Wasiu Gbolahan (a.k.a Teacher) who was later arrested and convicted by the court, hired him for Suleiman. Lawal further alleged that Wasiu Gbolahan linked him up with the baron through one Igbono, who was later unveiled through investigation as Oluwafemi Abidoye (a.k.a Igbono, Murphy, Femi Iwaya, Ade Iwaya, Baba Eje and Ejeoto)

Babafemi said, while investigation of the two cases subsisted and the manhunt for the baron was ongoing, two drug mules were arrested at the MMIA on June 21, 2024 on their way to Doha, Qatar. One of the suspects who was later identified as Aikhomoun Daniel (a.k.a Oladapo Olanrewaju) digested in observation custody a total of 90 pellets of cocaine, weighing 1.022 kilogrammes, which he ingested, while the second suspect, Ayigoro Omobolaji excreted 60 wraps of cocaine with a total weight of 662 grammes.

He said further investigation later revealed that the two arrested couriers, Aikhomoun Daniel and Ayigoro Omobolaji were recruited by the same Igbono who works for the baron and featured in 2022 during the arrest of Ajesegiri Sidika and Lawal Oyenuga.

He added that financial investigation conducted by the agency also linked the baron Suleiman to the arrested suspects and two of his associates who recruit traffickers for him: Oluwafemi Abidoye and Olanrewaju Ramon, both currently at large.

The spokesman said as a result, the agency blocked the bank accounts linked to members of the cartel after which Suleiman was eventually taken into custody on August 26, 2024 for further investigation.

In his statements, Suleiman was said to have claimed he is into property development and hotel management while he lives in Lagos and Paris, France.

He also stated that he runs another business that deals in cloths with his wife at Balogun market, Lagos Island, adding that his regular visits to Saudi Arabia was to perform lesser hajj.

He said he holds the traditional title of Akeweje of Yaba (Youth Leader of Yaba Land). Already, some properties traced to Suleiman include: two houses at 63 and 72 Queens Street, Ebute-Meta and his Barryshine hotel at 95 Freeman street, Yaba, Lagos.

Meanwhile, Justice Dipeolu Deinde Isaac of the Federal High Court, Lagos has granted an application by the NDLEA for the extension of the detention of the drug kingpin Suleiman for 30 days and to declare his two associates: Oluwafemi Abidoye and Olanrewaju Ramon, both currently at large, wanted.

Ruling on the motion ex-parte in suit number: FHC/L/MISC/555/24, Justice Dipeolu said: “an order is hereby made declaring one Oluwafemi Akande Abidoye a.ka ‘Igbono’, ‘Murphy’, ‘Femi Iwaya’, ‘Ade Iwaya’, ‘Baba Eje’, ‘Ejeoto’ wanted who is presently at large for his involvement in multiple drug trafficking activities with Suleiman Aremu Ganiu (a.k.a Barryshine).”

The judge also ruled that “an order is hereby made declaring one Olarenwaju Ramon Abdulahi wanted who is presently at large for his involvement in the drug trafficking activities with Suleiman Aremu Ganiu (a.k.a Baryshine) with respect to the arrest of Ajisegiri Kehinde Sidika who was arrested at MMIA Ikeja-Lagos during outward clearance of Qatar Airways flight to Saudi Arabia with 400 grammes of cocaine concealed in foot wears.”

Reacting to the development, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (Rtd) commended the officers and men of the MMIA Strategic Command for the painstaking two years investigation that culminated in the conviction of three traffickers and the eventual arrest of the kingpin behind the cartel. He said this demonstrates that the long arm of the law will always get whoever is involved in the criminal trade no matter how long it takes.

Wanted drug baron behind 4 cocaine shipments to Saudi Arabia, Qatar arrested

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Uncategorized

Troops Arrest Three Suspected Terrorist Collaborators in Taraba State Raid

Published

on

Troops Arrest Three Suspected Terrorist Collaborators in Taraba State Raid

By: Zagazola Makama

Troops of Operation Whirl Stroke (OPWS) have arrested three suspected terrorist collaborators during a coordinated raid on identified enclaves in Karim-Lamido Local Government Area of Taraba State.

Security sources said that the operation was carried out at about 0610 hours on May 10, 2026, by troops of Sector 3 OPWS deployed at Jimilari.

The sources said the troops conducted simultaneous raids on suspected terrorist hideouts at Binari, Chibi and Andamin communities following credible intelligence on the activities of criminal networks in the area.

According to the sources, three suspects believed to be providing support to terrorist elements were arrested during the operation.

Military authorities said the suspects are currently in custody and undergoing preliminary interrogation to determine the extent of their involvement and possible links to wider criminal networks.

They added that troops will sustain clearance operations and intelligence-led raids across vulnerable communities in Karim-Lamido Local Government Area to dismantle support structures for criminal elements and restore security in the area.

Troops Arrest Three Suspected Terrorist Collaborators in Taraba State Raid

Continue Reading

News

Execution Discipline Will Define Tegbe’s Agenda for Nigeria’s Power Sector-

Published

on

Execution Discipline Will Define Tegbe’s Agenda for Nigeria’s Power Sector-

By: Adeola Labzy

When the Minister-Designate for Power, Joseph Olasunkanmi Tegbe, told the Nigerian Senate that there was “no quick fix” to Nigeria’s electricity crisis, the statement stood out for departing from the familiar rhetoric that has long shaped public conversations about the sector. In a country where ambitious declarations on power reform have often generated headlines faster than measurable outcomes, Tegbe’s remarks offered an early signal of a different leadership posture, one anchored less on spectacle and more on execution.

This matters because Nigeria’s power sector has spent decades trapped in cycles of overpromising and institutional under-delivery. Successive reform efforts have come with bold projections, aggressive timelines, and repeated assurances. Yet the sector continues to struggle with liquidity constraints, weak market confidence, transmission vulnerabilities, collection inefficiencies, infrastructure deficits, and operational instability. Over time, the deeper casualty has not only been electricity supply, but institutional credibility.

Against that background, Tegbe’s emphasis on transparency, execution discipline, and operational realism should be read as a useful starting point, not a completed achievement. Nigeria’s electricity market does not suffer from a shortage of reform language. The problems are already well known to policymakers, operators, investors, regulators, and consumers. What has consistently undermined progress is fragmented implementation, weak accountability, poor coordination across the value chain, and the absence of sustained commercial discipline.

In that sense, Tegbe’s early posture appears calibrated toward restoring confidence in the system’s ability to execute before pursuing grand transformation narratives. This is particularly important in a sector where investor confidence, market liquidity, and operational stability are deeply interconnected. Markets respond not merely to ambition, but to predictability, governance credibility, and measurable execution. Each part of the value chain affects the other. Generation without evacuation capacity creates waste. Tariff reform without metering creates distrust. Investment without payment discipline weakens confidence. Policy statements without visible milestones deepen cynicism.

Financial sustainability will be one of the defining pillars of any credible reform effort. For years, the electricity market has operated within a fragile commercial structure marked by accumulated debts, subsidy pressures, payment shortfalls, collection gaps, and uncertainty over cost recovery. The long-term viability of the sector depends not only on expanding infrastructure, but on restoring commercial discipline and rebuilding confidence in the market itself.

This is where transparency becomes strategically important. Transparent reforms reduce uncertainty, strengthen accountability, and give investors, operators, consumers, and policymakers a clearer basis for judging progress. In practical terms, transparency is not merely a governance principle; it is an economic stabilisation tool. It can help rebuild trust in tariff decisions, improve confidence in sector data, and create a more disciplined environment for investment and performance monitoring.

Equally important is execution discipline. Infrastructure projects rarely fail only because funding is unavailable. Many fail because coordination weakens, procurement becomes opaque, implementation drifts, and accountability is diluted. In the power sector, credibility will not be rebuilt by rhetoric alone. It will require visible, measurable, and sustained improvements in the operating system of reform.

Nigeria’s power sector does not require another cycle of exaggerated optimism followed by institutional disappointment. It requires leadership capable of confronting difficult realities honestly while building a credible pathway toward operational stability, financial sustainability, and long-term reform credibility.

That is why Tegbe’s insistence on transparent reforms and execution discipline is important. Its significance will not lie in the statement itself, but in whether it becomes a governing method. In a sector where credibility has become almost as scarce as stable electricity, restoring confidence in governance may be the first and most important reform of all.

Adeola Labzy writes from Abuja, Nigeria.

Execution Discipline Will Define Tegbe’s Agenda for Nigeria’s Power Sector-

Continue Reading

Uncategorized

CDHR Condemns Escalating U.S. Sanctions on Cuba, Warns of Humanitarian Crisis

Published

on

CDHR Condemns Escalating U.S. Sanctions on Cuba, Warns of Humanitarian Crisis

By: Michael Mike

The Committee for the Defence of Human Rights (CDHR) has condemned the latest sanctions imposed on Cuba by the administration of Donald Trump, warning that the measures could trigger a humanitarian catastrophe and undermine Cuba’s sovereignty.

In a statement issued on Sunday, the Nigerian-based human rights organisation expressed solidarity with the government and people of Cuba amid what it described as a worsening economic and humanitarian crisis caused by renewed sanctions and executive actions from the United States.

The group particularly criticised Executive Order 14380 of January 29, 2026, as well as follow-up sanctions announced on May 1, 2026, targeting Cuba’s energy, financial, defence, mining and commercial sectors.

According to CDHR, the sanctions amount to a dangerous escalation of economic aggression capable of inflicting severe hardship on ordinary Cubans.

The organisation stated that provisions contained in Section 2 of the executive order, which impose restrictions on individuals, institutions and foreign entities engaging with Cuba, threaten the right to life and wellbeing of millions of citizens by limiting access to fuel, trade, financial cooperation and humanitarian support.

“The continued tightening of these sanctions constitutes a huge threat to humanity, particularly to the Cuban people’s internationally recognised rights to life, healthcare, food security, development and self-determination,” the statement read.

CDHR said the sanctions had already disrupted fuel supplies to the island nation, resulting in prolonged blackouts, transportation paralysis, shortages of food and clean water, and disruptions within the healthcare system.

The organisation cited reports of suspended surgeries, interruptions in chemotherapy and dialysis treatments, and worsening shortages of medical supplies as evidence of an avoidable humanitarian disaster.

The rights group further argued that economic coercion which undermines access to healthcare, electricity and basic necessities contradicts the principles of international law, human rights and the sovereign equality of nations as enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations.

It also expressed concern over what it described as inflammatory rhetoric aimed at destabilising Cuba, warning that such actions threaten global principles of non-interference and self-determination.

Recalling Cuba’s historical support for liberation struggles in Africa, including assistance to anti-colonial movements in Algeria, Angola, Namibia, Guinea-Bissau and South Africa, CDHR noted that the country had consistently demonstrated international solidarity despite decades of sanctions.

The organisation also highlighted Cuba’s deployment of medical professionals during the Ebola outbreak and the COVID-19 pandemic across parts of Africa and the Global South.

CDHR lamented what it described as the silence of much of the international community while Cubans continue to endure economic hardship.

The group called on governments, regional organisations, civil society bodies, labour unions and humanitarian institutions worldwide to speak against what it termed the “economic strangulation” of Cuba and defend the country’s sovereignty.

It also urged the United Nations and international humanitarian agencies to take urgent steps toward addressing the humanitarian situation in Cuba and opposing policies that endanger civilian lives.

The statement was signed by CDHR National President, Yinka Folarin, and National Secretary, Idris Afees.

CDHR Condemns Escalating U.S. Sanctions on Cuba, Warns of Humanitarian Crisis

Continue Reading

Trending

Verified by MonsterInsights