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Artists, Manager, also a Businessman Nabbed by NDLEA for selling Drugs in Lagos Island Clubs  

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Artists, Manager, also a Businessman Nabbed by NDLEA for selling drugs in Lagos Island Clubs  
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Artists, Manager, also a Businessman Nabbed by NDLEA for selling drugs in Lagos Island Clubs

A well-known artist’s manager and a wealthy businessman were arrested by the National Drug Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa, Chairman/CEO of NDLEA, commended the personnel involved for their commitment and persistence.

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Artists, Manager, also a Businessman Nabbed by NDLEA for selling drugs in Lagos Island Clubs  

Nnamdi Kingsley

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) also arrested numerous important individuals for selling illegal narcotics in luxury clubs throughout Lekki and Lagos Island as part of a significant anti-drug operation. These individuals include NewsReport Nigeria gathered.

According to a statement by NDLEA’s spokesman, Femi Babafemi, the agency’s robust action follows a crucial tip-off regarding a shipment of Colorado, a potent strain of cannabis, from Los Angeles.

The first suspect apprehended on Sunday, July 23, was Oseni Abdulraheem Ayodeji Babatunde, a prominent figure in the Lekki entertainment scene. Babatunde confessed to his involvement in the illegal trade for the past three years and named high-profile clubs, including Quilox, Silver Fox, DNA, and Hot Box, as distribution points.

NDLEA operatives intercepted ten parcels of Colorado, weighing 2.50kg, hidden in coffee tins and duvets at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), linked to Babatunde. A subsequent search of his residence led to the recovery of more quantities of the illicit substance along with related equipment.

The second individual, an Ikoyi-based businessman named Nnadi Kingsley Ikenna, who was out of the country when the shipment arrived, was apprehended upon his return on Thursday, July 27. Ikenna admitted ownership of part of the confiscated consignment.

Several other high-profile seizures and arrests were made as part of this major anti-drug operation, underscoring NDLEA’s unwavering commitment to eradicating drug trafficking in the country.

NDLEA’s Chairman/CEO, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd), praised the dedication and tenacity of the officers involved.

He urged all NDLEA commands to remain steadfast in their mission to counter the increasingly desperate tactics of drug cartels and barons. The ongoing operation is a stark reminder of the continuous battle against drug trafficking in Nigeria and the relentless efforts of NDLEA to disrupt this illegal trade.

Artists, Manager, also a Businessman Nabbed by NDLEA for selling drugs in Lagos Island Clubs  

Oseni Abdulraheem

Artists, Manager, also a Businessman Nabbed by NDLEA for selling drugs in Lagos Island Clubs  

Below is the full statement released by the NDLEA.

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, have arrested a Lekki-based artist’s manager and his Ikoyi businessman accomplice, who specialize in distributing illicit drugs to fun seekers at VIP nightclubs and lounges in Lekki and the Island Axis of Lagos State.

Their arrest followed intelligence about a shipment of Colorado, a synthetically strong strain of cannabis, coming for them from Los Angeles, United States. Oseni Abdulraheem Ayodeji Babatunde (aka Papalampa) was the first to be arrested in his house at No. 3 Ope Daniel Taiwo Street, off Chisco Bus Stop, Lekki area of Lagos, when the consignment arrived on Sunday, July 23rd.

During a preliminary interview with the suspect, he confessed that he started the illicit trade three years ago and has been selling to patrons of clubs and lounges in Lekki and Lagos Island, some of which he identified as Quilox, Silver Fox, DNA, and Hot Box. Oseni said that besides the drug business, he also organizes shows for artists around Lagos and outside Nigeria.

A total of ten (10) parcels of Colorado weighing 2.50kg concealed inside large tins of coffee and duvets linked to Oseni were intercepted by NDLEA operatives at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, MMIA, Ikeja. During a follow-up search of his residence, operatives recovered some quantities of the same substance, a digital weighing scale, and other paraphernalia.

An Ikoyi-based businessman, Nnadi Kingsley Ikenna, also linked to the shipment, was away in South Africa when the consignment arrived. While operatives maintained surveillance around his 18 Okotie Eboh Close, Ikoyi residence, they also set up their dragnet for him at the airport. He eventually arrived in the waiting arms of NDLEA officers on Thursday, July 27, when he returned to the country on a Kenya Airlines flight at the Lagos airport. Kingsley, in his statement, accepted ownership of a part of the consignment.

In the same vein, NDLEA operatives attached to the NAHCO export shed of the MMIA intercepted a cargo going to Nairobi, Kenya. A search of the consignment revealed that various quantities of MDMA (Ecstasy), popularly known as ‘Molly and Rohypnol were concealed in a bag consisting of foodstuffs. An agent, Onydem Chinwe Florence, who presented it for export, was arrested.

Also, an attempt by another suspect, Igboma Ifeanyi, to export quantities of Loud, a variant of Cannabis, Tramadol, and Rohypnol, all weighing 7.8 kg and concealed in 66 bottles of skin-lightening lotion, was thwarted by vigilant operatives who intercepted him while he was preparing to board an Ethiopian airline flight to Muscat, Oman, at the Lagos airport.

Another suspect, Ekpenisi Wisdom Pious, was equally arrested while trying to board an Ethiopian airline flight to Oman with 6 kg of skunk hidden in a bag of foodstuff. A follow-up operation led to the arrest of a staff member of Toprano Hotel, Ikeja, Ibigbami Temitope Oluwatobi, who was fingered in the drug trafficking scheme.

A consignment of 5.70 kg of codeine syrup going to the United Kingdom was seized on Thursday, July 27th, from a 51-year-old widow, Adewunmi Taiwo Atinuke, by NDLEA operatives at the SAHCO export shed of the MMIA Ikeja.

Equally, a consignment of 8.5 kg of skunk well concealed in a vehicle engine block going to Dubai, UAE, was intercepted on Tuesday, July 18th, by NDLEA officers of the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation, DOGI, attached to courier companies in Lagos.

Artists, Manager, also a Businessman Nabbed by NDLEA for selling drugs in Lagos Island Clubs  

Illegal Narcotics Dealars

Artists, Manager, also a Businessman Nabbed by NDLEA for selling drugs in Lagos Island Clubs  

 

At the Apapa seaport in Lagos, another container load of nitrous oxide, popularly known as laughing gas, linked to a 30-year-old businessman, Stephen Eze, was seized on Tuesday, July 25th. Two containers of the same substance imported from China by the suspect were earlier seized on July 13 at the Apapa port.

The third shipment was intercepted during a joint examination of the container marked SUDU7431605, which contained 8,336 canisters of Nitrous Oxide and pressure release Nozzles.

In Ondo State, two suspects, Francis Diamond, 26, and Adekunle Damilola, 26, were arrested in Ita Ogbolu forest with 247.5 kg of cannabis, while a Golf Car conveying the same substance weighing 308kg was intercepted at Airport Junction along Akure-Ogbese Road on Wednesday, July 26th, with suspect Farouk Umar, 38, arrested.

A 32-year-old suspect, Chukwuma Nnaji, was also arrested with 47 kg of skunk in a warehouse at Onuogba Eke, Ishielu LGA, Enugu State, on Saturday, July 29, while 12kg of the same substance was recovered from a lock-up shop during the raid.

A grandpa, Boniface Ogwurlobi, 62, and Chimezie Onyenjuru were arrested at Uli town, Ihila LGA, Anambra state, with a total of 49.415 kg of cannabis sativa, 127.7 grams of methamphetamine, and 15 grams of cocaine during a raid operation on Friday, July 28th, while men of the 9th Brigade, Nigerian Army, transferred three suspects, Olasande Olutosin, Oleh Chiagozie, and Obamuro Baiyeri, arrested with 2,608.3 kg of cannabis sativa and the truck conveying the substance, to the Lagos State Command of NDLEA on Tuesday, July 25th.

In Ogun State, operatives on Thursday, July 26, uncovered another snack factory in Sagamu, where a suspect, Femi Isiaka, was arrested. Recovered from the factory are 37kg of cannabis; 195 pills of Tramadol, 5,000 tabs of Diazepam, 216 tabs of Rophynol, 204 liters of scrunchies; four fridges; four gas cylinders; and one industrial cooker, among other items.

No fewer than 156,380 pills of Tramadol and other opioids were seized from two suspects, Abdulrazak Bala, and Lawal Salisu, when they were arrested along the Gwagwalada-Abaji road in the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, on Saturday, July 29th.

Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of the Agency, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd), commended the officers and men of the MMIA, Apapa, Enugu, Anambra, Ondo, Lagos, FCT, and Ogun Commands, as well as those of DOGI, for their resilience and commitment.

He charged them and their counterparts in other Commands to remain undaunted by the various machinations of drug cartels and barons, who are daily frustrated and desperate due to the continued heat on them and their criminal trade.

Femi Babafemi

Director, Media, and Advocacy

NDLEA Headquarters, Abuja

Sunday, July 30th, 2023

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