NDLEA Nabs Notorious Drug Kingpin, Accomplices In Abuja

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has captured Ibrahim Momoh, popularly known as Ibrahim Bendel, a major distributor of illegal substances in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja. According to NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi on Monday, the arrest took place during a raid on Momoh’s hideout at Filin Dabo, Dei-Dei area, seven years after his escape from prison custody.  Momoh, previously convicted for drug dealing, absconded while serving a seven-and-a-half-year sentence in 2016. “Acting on credible intelligence, NDLEA operatives raided Momoh’s warehouse, recovering 1,278kg of Cannabis sativa hidden in 81 jumbo bags,” Babafemi stated. The drug lord’s warehouse was discreetly situated within his poultry farm, with his manager, Richard Forson Gordon, a 55-year-old Ghanaian, apprehended during the operation and subsequently sentenced to two years in jail. Continuing their pursuit, NDLEA operatives finally captured Momoh on November 5, 2022, in another raid at his hideout in Filin Dabo, seizing 56.9kg of Cannabis sativa and 42.7 grams of Diazepam. Additionally, during a separate operation in the FCT, a 27-year-old suspect named Yusufa Ibrahim was arrested with 75.3kg of cannabis. The NDLEA said it remains resolute in its efforts to curb illicit drug activities within the FCT, ensuring the law is upheld and perpetrators face justice.

NDLEA nabs 84 suspects, seizes 451.976kg illicit substances in Kaduna

In a significant operation, the Kaduna State Command of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has successfully apprehended 84 suspects and confiscated a total of 451.976kg of illicit drugs within the region. The State Commander of NDLEA, Mr. Ibrahim Braji, made this announcement in Kaduna, revealing that these arrests and seizures occurred during the month of July. During this period, the command also achieved six convictions of suspects involved in illicit drug activities. The range of seized substances encompasses a variety of illegal drugs, including Indian Hemp, Cocaine, Methamphetamine, Tramadol, and other Psychotropic substances. The overall combined weight of the confiscated drugs during this review period is reported to be 451.976kg. Moreover, the vigilant operatives of NDLEA discovered 90 rounds of live ammunition, live bullets of 7.62mm calibers, and a newly identified Jojef pump-action gun with the registration number 23-0174. The NDLEA has also been resolute in their efforts to eradicate the presence of illicit drug joints across the state. A commendable feat of dismantling 18 such establishments has been accomplished during the month under review. These locations include Kantin Agah, Hayin Dan-mani, Mando, Anguwan Dosa, Mararabar Rido, Tukur-Tukur, and Sabon Gari. Additional locations that were addressed include Palladan, Unguwar Doki, Mekera, Rigasa, Dan Daura, Karji, Ghana road, Television, Unguwar Ma’azu, Kudenden, and Jushi. Mr. Ibrahim Braji took the opportunity to make an appeal to parents, urging them to maintain vigilance over their children’s activities and associates. He emphasized the importance of knowing the company their children keep to prevent them from getting involved in illegal activities. Furthermore, Braji issued a stern warning to individuals engaged in the unlawful drug trade. He urged them to seek lawful means of livelihood and emphasized that the NDLEA remains committed to pursuing and prosecuting those who persist in illicit activities, ensuring that they face the full force of the law. “Grand total weight of drug seized within the period under review is 451.976kg. The commander also disclosed that its operatives also recovered 90 rounds of live ammunition; Live bullets 7.62mm calibres and new Jojef pump action gun with registration number 23-0174. “Within the month under review, 18 illicit drug joints have been dismantled across the state which included Kantin Agah, Hayin Dan-mani, Mando, Anguwan Dosa, Mararabar Rido, Tukur-Tukur and Sabon Gari. Others are Palladan, Unguwar Doki, Mekera, Rigasa, Dan Daura, Karji, Ghana road, Television, Unguwar Ma’azu,  Kudenden and Jushi. Braji appealed to parents to watch over their children and know the kind of friends they associated with at all times. He warned illegal drug dealers to look for better livelihood, adding that if they refused, the agency would go after them and ensure they faced full wrath of law.

India-bound ‘couple’ excretes 184 wraps of cocaine – NDLEA

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, (NDLEA) have arrested a fake couple, Kingsley and Roseline Ilonzeh for ingesting 184 wraps of cocaine. The Director, Media and Advocacy, NDLEA, Mr. Femi Babafemi, said this in a statement on Sunday in Abuja. He said that the suspected drug traffickers were purportedly going for medical treatment in India. Babafemi said that the drugs weighed 3.322Kg, while another 100 grammes of the drug was concealed in the woman’s private part. He said that the two suspects were intercepted at Screening Point 1, Terminal 1 of the international wing of the Lagos airport on Aug. 1, while attempting to board an Ethiopian airline flight to India. Babafemi further said that though their travel documents showed consistency in their names and depicted them as a couple, an NDLEA officer however, decided to subject them to a body scan. He said that the scan confirmed the couple ingested drugs as a result of which they were later placed on excretion observation at the agency’s facility. ”Their travel documents identify the man as Ilonzeh Kingsley Onyebuchi and the lady to be Ilonzeh Roseline Nonyelum, “Preliminary investigation reveals that the intending passengers are not a couple but obtained the travel documents in the same surname to beat security checks at the airport. “The lady later gave her real name as Ngogbike Nkechi. During interview, she confessed that she was recruited in her Church in Aba, Abia where she lives. “The suspect, Ilonzeh Roseline Nonyelum (aka Ngogbike Nkechi) states further that she is a divorcee and that Kingsley, with whom she is travelling is not her husband but connected only for the purpose of the illicit drug business trip. “She said that Kingsley, her arranged husband brought the pellets of cocaine to ingest her in the hotel where they both lodged in separate rooms on July, 31, ” he said. The NDLEA spokesperson said that after their arrest, a thorough search conducted on her led to the discovery of a big size wrap of cocaine that weighed 100 grammes which she inserted into her private part. He said that the suspected drug trafficker confessed that she was promised $5,000 upon successful delivery of the drug in India. Babafemi said that in his own statement, Kingsley, who was into clothing business in Onitsha, Anambra claimed he was promised $2,000 after a successful delivery of the drug in India. “A further search of the agency’s crime data base reveals that Kingsley also obtained his travel documents with fake identity for the trip. “Indeed, it has been established that he was arrested by NDLEA operatives at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Abuja on March 19, 2022, for ingesting 100 wraps of cocaine weighing 2.243kgs upon his arrival from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on board an Ethiopian airline flight. “His travel documents then contained his real name: Uwaezuoke Ikenna Christian,” he said. He noted that after his arrest at the Abuja airport on March 19, 2022, with another suspect, Iro Elvis Uche, who also ingested 65 wraps of cocaine with a gross weight of 1.376kgs, Uwaezuoke was subsequently arraigned. Babafemi said that he was arraigned before Justice Zainab Abubakar of the Federal High Court Abuja with charge number: FHC/ABJ/CR/438/2022. He said that the suspect was eventually granted bail by the court, pending the conclusion of his trial. ”He is still on court bail when he was arrested at the Lagos airport for a similar offence on August 1. “Ilonzeh Kingsley Onyebuchi (aka Uwaezuoke Ikenna Christian) excreted a total of 82 wraps of cocaine with a gross weight of 1.822kgs in five excretions. “Ilonzeh Roseline Nonyelum (aka Ngogbike Nkechi) ingested 101 wraps in four excretions with a big size wrap of the substance recovered from her private part, all weighing 1.50kgs,” he said.