ENUGU, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 40-year-old wanted drug baron, Abayomi Yussuf, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos, while attempting to board a flight to Saudi Arabia.
According to the agency’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, in a statement issued on Sunday, the arrest followed months of meticulous intelligence gathering and surveillance on Yussuf and his extensive criminal network.
Babafemi revealed that Yussuf had previously been apprehended and charged with drug-related offences in the United Kingdom but absconded after being granted bail.
Upon his return to Nigeria, he established a large-scale clandestine laboratory in the Lekki area of Lagos for producing Colorado, a potent synthetic cannabis, and other illegal substances.
“At about 6:30 a.m. on Thursday, Yussuf walked into the waiting hands of NDLEA operatives at the Lagos airport while attempting to board his flight to Saudi Arabia for Umrah.
“He was immediately taken to his residence at 17 Vincent Eku Street, Ogombo, Lekki, which had been under surveillance. At the time of his arrest, Yussuf was found with another suspect, 43-year-old Abideen Kekere-Ekun”, Babafemi stated.
Inside the spacious building, operatives from the Directorate of Forensic and Chemical Monitoring dismantled all laboratory equipment, precursor chemicals, and already-processed drugs, including 148.3 kilograms of Colorado.
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In another operation, Babafemi said that at the Sifax Bonded Terminal in Okota, Lagos, NDLEA operatives, working with officers from the Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies, discovered 105.5 kilograms of Molly, a designer drug, and 500 grams of methamphetamine during a joint cargo inspection on Friday.
The statement added that in Edo State, a 73-year-old man, James Ugbedo, was arrested on Friday inside a cannabis plantation at Igbeshi forest, Imiakebo, Etsako East LGA, where 1,459.75 kilograms of skunk were destroyed, and another 5.6 kilograms seized.
Similarly, a 70-year-old woman, Mrs. Comfort Odudu, was apprehended at Onopa, Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, on Tuesday with 5 kilograms of skunk.
“In Niger State,” Babafemi continued, “NDLEA operatives on Thursday intercepted Ibrahim Mohammed, 35, driving a Volvo truck with registration number GRZ 872 XA, along the Kainji-Wawa road. The truck was conveying 87,000 tramadol pills and 72 kilograms of skunk, a variant of cannabis.”
He further disclosed that on Monday, operatives intercepted a Toyota Corolla (GAN 102 AR) along the Zaki-Biam Wukari road, concealing 34,520 tramadol capsules in multiple compartments. The driver, 25-year-old Aliyu Samaila, was subsequently arrested.
“The opioids were loaded in Onitsha, Anambra State, and destined for Cameroon,” the NDLEA spokesperson said.
“In another operation in Taraba State, our officers on Thursday arrested 28-year-old Felix Tanko Chinedu with 15,020 capsules of tramadol at Kasuwabera ATC, Ardo Kola LGA.”
Babafemi also revealed that NDLEA operatives in Kogi State intercepted a 7.6-kilogram consignment of Loud, a potent cannabis strain, during patrol along the Okene/Lokoja highway on Wednesday.
A follow-up operation in Abuja led to the arrest of the suspected owner, 40-year-old Chukwunonso Anieze, and the recovery of 175,000 pills of opioids from another consignment at the same location.
Furthermore, three suspects Olayide Oyidiran (39), Abdulsalam Abdulsalam (28), and Opeyemi Tijjani (39) were arrested on Wednesday at the Abuja/Kaduna tollgate with 769 kilograms of skunk hidden in a truck with registration number TRE 897 BE, transporting the drugs from Lagos to Owo, Ondo State, and en route to Kano.