PeakNews Online
Lagos, Nigeria – The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has apprehended a couple, Agbakoba John Mmadu and Agbakoba Ijeoma Chinwe, along with their associate, Okoye Ifeoma Maryjane, for operating a high-profile cocaine syndicate based in Lagos.
During a raid conducted by the NDLEA’s special operations unit, large consignments of cocaine intended for both local distribution and export were seized. The operation followed months of intelligence gathering and surveillance on the syndicate, known for its involvement in the packaging, distribution, and trafficking of cocaine within and outside Nigeria.
Agbakoba John Mmadu, 54, was arrested at Ago Palace Way, Okota, while his wife, Agbakoba Ijeoma Chinwe, 39, and their associate, Okoye Ifeoma Maryjane, 31, who also acted as their stash keeper, were apprehended at Plot 2205 Eugene Ndubisi Close, Lilly Estate, Amuwo Odofin area of Lagos, on Wednesday, July 3, 2024.
NDLEA operatives recovered seven parcels of cocaine weighing 7.652 kilograms from Mmadu at Ago Palace Way. Additionally, 122 compressed pellets of cocaine weighing 2.42 kilograms were seized from Ijeoma and Ifeoma at Lilly Estate. The total seizure amounted to 10.1 kilograms, valued at over N2.1 billion in street value.
In a related operation, NDLEA operatives in Benue State intercepted a consignment of 350 grams of cocaine at a checkpoint along Enugu Road, Otukpo, on Thursday, July 4. The cocaine was concealed in an MP3 speaker sent as a waybill parcel. A follow-up operation at Flight Motor Park in Otukpo led to the arrest of the owner, 25-year-old Odeh Anthony.
Meanwhile, in Adamawa State, NDLEA officers arrested a Chadian national, Yves Ahmat Gali, on Wednesday, July 3, during a stop-and-search operation along Ngurore-Yola Road. Gali was found with a loudspeaker concealing 20 compressed blocks and nine plastic containers of Loud, a potent strain of cannabis, weighing 5.200 kilograms.
In Kano, operatives arrested a youth corps member, Yusuf Abdulrahman, 25, at the Corpers Lodge in Sumaila area with 1.250 kilograms of Loud. In Osun State, the head of Akarabata community in Ile-Ife, Ba’ale Ige Babatunde, 50, was arrested on Friday, July 5, with fresh cannabis plants weighing 5 kilograms.
Additionally, NDLEA operatives in Ondo State arrested two suspects, Monday Ali, 49, and Jimoh Alewi, 37, during a raid on Ikota Forest in Ifedore LGA. A total of 42,500 kilograms of cannabis was destroyed on 17 hectares of farmland, with 73.5 kilograms of the substance recovered for prosecution.
In Abuja, NDLEA operatives arrested Sanusi Mamman, 28, and Usaini Ibrahim, 20, on Saturday, July 6, along the Abaji-Gwagwalada road. The suspects were found with 1,132 bottles of codeine syrup, 13,540 pills of tramadol, 50,000 pills of diazepam, and 59 pills of rophynol, which they claimed were being transported from Onitsha, Anambra State.
NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Marwa (Rtd), commended the officers for their efforts in reducing drug supply. He also highlighted the agency’s War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitization activities conducted across various schools, worship centers, workplaces, and communities nationwide.
These activities included enlightenment lectures for students at Community Grammar School (Junior) in Aroro, Ibadan, Oyo State; Candy Secondary School in Agu Awka, Anambra State; Community High School in Umuida, Enugu Ezike, Enugu State; School for Arabic and Islamic Studies in Kofar Nasarawa, Kano State; and a sensitization lecture organized by the Zone M Zonal Command of NDLEA at Sabo Motor Park, Kaduna.
Brig. Gen. Marwa urged all NDLEA operatives to maintain the momentum in their drug enforcement and awareness efforts.
