Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, have arrested a community head in Osun State, Ige Babatunde, for alleged possession of cannabis plants.
He was arrested by the NDLEA on Friday with fresh cannabis plants weighing five kilograms, according to a statement on Sunday by the agency’s spokesperson, Femi Babafemi.
He said, “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.”
Babafemi also said operatives arrested a corps member, identified as Yusuf Abdulrahman, with a Loud consignment which weighed 1.250kg at a corpers’ lodge in Kano State.
He said, “In Kano, operatives on Wednesday, July 3, arrested a youth corps member, Yusuf Abdulrahman, 25, at the Corpers Lodge, Sumaila area of the city, with 1.250kg of Loud.“
Babafemi added that its operatives raided the hideout of a high-profile cocaine baron headed by a couple in Lagos.
He said consignments of the class A drug meant for export and local distribution were recovered during the operation.
Babafemi added that a total of 10.1 kilograms valued at over N2.1bn in street value were recovered from the suspects.
He said, “Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency 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 the Ago Palace Way residence, no fewer than 122 compressed pellets of the same drug weighing 2.42kg were seized from the duo of Ijeoma and Ifeoma at the Lilly Estate, bringing the total seizure to 10.1 kilograms valued at over N2.1bn in street value.”
Babafemi also disclosed that the 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 the Flight Motor Park in Otukpo led to the arrest of the owner, 25-year-old Odeh Anthony.
In Abuja, Babafemi said the FCT, NDLEA 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.
