Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency have detained a monarch in Osun State, Ige Babatunde, for allegedly possessing cannabis plants.
The agency’s spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, who disclosed this in a statement shares on X on Sunday, noted that the arrest occurred on July 5 .
He added that Babatunde was found with fresh cannabis plants weighing 5kg.
Babafemi stated, “In Osun State, the head of Akarabata community in Ile-Ife, Ba’ale Ige Babatunde, 50, was on Friday, July 5 arrested with fresh cannabis plants that weighed 5kg.”
He also reported the arrest of a corps member, Yusuf Abdulrahman, with a quantity of loud weighing 1.250kg at a corpers lodge in Kano State.
He explained, “In Kano, operatives on Wednesday, July 3rd, arrested a youth corps member, Yusuf Abdulrahman, 25, at Corpers Lodge, Sumaila area of the city, with 1.250kg of Loud.”
Babafemi further disclosed that NDLEA operatives had raided a high-profile cocaine baron’s hideout led by a couple in Lagos.
He noted that consignments of the class A drug intended for export and local distribution were seized during the operation, with a total of 10.1 kg valued at over N2.1 billion in street value.
He elaborated, “Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, have raided the Lagos base of a high-profile cocaine syndicate headed by a couple: Agbakoba John Mmadu, and Agbakoba Ijeoma Chinwe as well as their associate, Okoye Ifeoma Maryjane, where large consignments of the class A drug meant for export and local distribution were recovered.
“The raid carried out by a special operations unit of the Agency followed months of intelligence gathering and surveillance on the syndicate notorious for packaging, distributing and trafficking of cocaine within and outside Nigeria.
“The 54-year-old Agbakoba John Mmadu was arrested at Ago palace way, Okota, while his wife, Agbakoba Ijeoma Chinwe, 39, and associate, Okoye Ifeoma Maryjane, 31, who doubles as their stash keeper, were nabbed at Plot 2205 Eugene Ndubisi close, Lilly Estate, Amuwo Odofin area of Lagos, all on Wednesday July 3, 2024.
“While seven parcels of cocaine with a total weight of 7.652 kilograms were recovered from Mmadu at Ago palace way, not less than 122 compressed pellets of the same drug weighing 2.42kg were seized from the duo of Ijeoma and Ifeoma at Lilly Estate, bringing the total seizure to 10.1 kilograms valued at over N2.1 billion in street value.”
Babafemi mentioned that NDLEA operatives in Benue State on Thursday, July 4, intercepted a consignment of 350 grams of cocaine at a checkpoint along Enugu Road, Otukpo.
He added, “The illicit drug was concealed in an MP3 speaker sent as a waybill parcel. A swift follow-up operation at Flight Motor Park in Otukpo led to the arrest of the owner, 25-year-old Odeh Anthony.”
Additionally, NDLEA officers, on a stop-and-search operation along Ngurore-Yola road in Adamawa State on Wednesday, July 3, arrested a Chadian, Yves Ahmat Gali, in a commercial bus traveling from Kano to Yola.
“The suspect was found with a loudspeaker used to conceal 20 compressed blocks, and nine plastic containers of Loud, a strong strain of cannabis weighing 5.200kg.”
Babafemi also reported that two suspects were arrested by NDLEA operatives who raided Ikota forest in Ifedore LGA, Ondo State, where a total of 42,500kg of cannabis was destroyed on 17 hectares of farmland.
He added that 73.5kg of the same substance was recovered for the prosecution of the suspects during a five-day operation that ended on Monday, July 1. The suspects were identified as Monday Ali, 49, and Jimoh Alewi, 37.
In Abuja, the NDLEA spokespsrson stated that the anti-narcotic operatives on Saturday, July 6, arrested the duo of Sanusi Mamman, 28, and Usaini Ibrahim, 20, in a vehicle along Abaji-Gwagwalada with 1,132 bottles of codeine syrup, 13,540 pills of tramadol, 50,000 pills of diazepam, and 59 pills of rophynol.
“The suspects claimed they were bringing the opioids from Onitsha, Anambra State,” he said.
