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N6.5bn opioids intercepted in Lagos, Rivers ports as NDLEA nabs 2 British men(Photos)

Published

11 months ago

May 25, 2025

Kayode Sanni-Arewa

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. Destroys 77,000kg skunk in Cross River, Edo forests; recovers 4,000kg in Nasarawa

By Kayode Sanni-Arewa

No fewer than six million pills of opioids namely: tamol 225mg, tapentadol 225mg and carisoprodol 225mg as well as 332,000 bottles of codeine-based cough syrup with a combined street value of Six Billion Five Hundred and Twenty-Four Million Naira (N6,524,000,000.00) have been intercepted by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Port Harcourt Ports Complex, Onne, Rivers and the Apapa seaport, Lagos.

The seizures at the Apapa and Onne ports followed intelligence and tracking of new trafficking routes to ship illicit substances into Nigeria by drug cartels, which necessitated the watch-listing of the containers for 100 percent examination. The consignments at the Port Harcourt ports: six million pills of opioids and 162,000 bottles of codeine syrup were uncovered in two containers on Monday 19th and Tuesday 20th May 2025 during a joint examination of the shipments by NDLEA officers with men of the Nigeria Customs and other security agencies. At the Apapa port in Lagos, a total of 170,000 bottles of codeine syrup were discovered in a watch-listed container by NDLEA operatives during a similar joint examination exercise on Thursday 22nd May.

Meanwhile, two British nationals: Mhizha Jordan Alexander Tatendra and Ayedipe Andrew Adejuwon as well as two Nigerians: Shonowo Oluwaseun Imole and Ofuoma Omokaro Ayobami have been arrested by NDLEA operatives for attempting to smuggle into Nigeria 92 bags of Loud, a strong strain of cannabis weighing 51.10kg through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, MMIA Ikeja Lagos.
Alexander was intercepted with the consignment upon his arrival at the MMIA on a Qatar Airline flight from Doha based on processed intelligence on Thursday 15th May.

He was allowed to pass through the security control unhindered and closely monitored by NDLEA operatives to the car park, where the owner of the cargo, Ayedipe Andrew Adejuwon, who is a Nigerian British, was waiting in an SUV along with his relation Shonowo Oluwaseun Imole and the driver of the vehicle, Ofuoma Omokaro Ayobami, to receive the courier.
The NDLEA operatives tracking them however swooped on them as they attempted to drive out of the airport car park, arresting them with the drug exhibits in the vehicle. In his statement, Alexander confessed he was recruited during his vacation weeks ago while he was promised 1,300 British Pounds after a successful delivery of the consignment in Lagos. The arrowhead of the syndicate, Ayedipe Andrew Adejuwon, confessed that he arrived in Nigeria a day earlier from South Africa through Ghana.
A follow-up operation at their apartment in Lekki led to more discoveries. At the point of his arrest, N93,000 and 17,200 South African Rand were recovered from him while a search of his Lekki apartment, led to the seizure of Three Million Eight Hundred and Ten Thousand Five Hundred Naira (N3,810,500) cash, an Apple laptop, an iPhone 14 Pro Max and four laughing gas (Nitro Oxide) canisters.
A total of 75,000 kilograms of skunk were destroyed on 30 hectares of cannabis farms
by NDLEA operatives at Esuk-Odot village in Odukpani LGA, Cross River state where 200kg of same substance was recovered on Wednesday 22nd May, while 1,957.5kg of the same psychoactive plant was destroyed at Ohosu forest, Ovia South West LGA and Okhuse community forest, Owan West LGA, Edo State on Friday 23rd and Saturday 24th May.
In Nasarawa state, two suspects: Sunday Daniel, 51, and Abu Peter, 30, were arrested at Keffi by NDLEA operatives on Saturday 24th May when 4,000 kilograms of skunk were discovered concealed under unprocessed wood in their lorry, while another suspect, Godwin Obi, 39, was nabbed at Karu with 154.5kg of same substance on Wednesday 21st May.

In Kaduna, NDLEA operatives on patrol along Kaduna – Zaria expressway at Gwargwaje on Wednesday 21st May, intercepted 22-year-old Muhammad Hamza with 57,750 pills of tramadol and diazepam, while same day their counterparts in Bauchi arrested Usman Muhammad, 45, along Bauchi-Misau road with 80 blocks of skunk weighing 45kg.
Similarly, operatives on stop-and-search operations along Potiskum–Damaturu road, Yobe state intercepted 55 parcels of Colorado, weighing 2kg, which a suspect Adum Muhammed, 29, was attempting to smuggle into the Republic of Chad through Ngamboru Ngala border town in Borno State.

In Niger state, NDLEA operatives on patrol along Mokwa-Jebba road on Thursday 22nd May intercepted a Mercedes Benz car marked FST 938 FU loaded with 235 blocks of compressed cannabis sativa weighing 97kg and arrested a suspect, Adams Ayibakro.
This is even as operatives in Lagos raided the Osapa London area of Lekki where they arrested a suspect Jonathan Isa with different quantities of Cocaine, Methamphetamine, Molly, Rohypnol, Codeine, Cannabis and Nitrous Oxide while another raid at Idasun, Eleko, Ibeju Lekki on Saturday 24th May led to the arrest of Olamilekan Idowu and seizure of 48kg skunk.

The War Against Drug Abuse, WADA, social advocacy activities by NDLEA Commands equally continued across the country in the past week. Some of them include: WADA sensitization lecture delivered to students and staff of Adamu Babbale Government Secondary School, Dimirkol, Katsina; Mary Hanney Secondary School, Oron, Akwa Ibom; Nnodo Secondary School, Abakaliki, Ebonyi; Government Secondary School, Guyuk, Adamawa; and Government Girls Islamic Secondary School, Gwagwarwa, Kano while Lagos State command of NDLEA paid WADA advocacy visit to the Sarkin Fulani of Lagos, Alhaji Muhammadu Bambado, among others.

While commending the officers and men of PHPC, MMIA, Apapa, Nasarawa, Cross River, Edo, Lagos, Niger, Kaduna, Yobe and Bauchi Commands of the Agency for the arrests and seizures of the past week, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd) praised their counterparts in all the commands across the country for ensuring a fair balance between their drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction efforts.

News

2027: Obi, Igbo leaders, consult with Jonathan in a closed-door meeting in Abuja

Published

1 hour ago

April 27, 2026

EMMANUEL AGAJI

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The frontline Presidential aspirant for 2027 and the 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Mr Peter Obi, on Monday led top Igbo leaders to the, Maitiama Abuja home of former President Goodluck Jonathan.

The meeting lasted for about two hours and was attended by some South East leaders, including former Enugu State governor, Dr Okwesilize Nwodo, his Imo State counterpart, Chief Achike Udenwa, former Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Chief Onyema Ugochukwu, Senators Ben Obi and Victor Umeh, among others.

Obi who spoke to journalists after the meeting, disclosed that it was in continuation of consultations with former national leaders in the country regarding his presidential ambition.

The former Labour Party candidate is seeking the ticket of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), saying they have not yet come for endorsement but for consultations and exchange of views.

Obi explained that the meeting was part of his consultations with former leaders.

“We need to consult them, especially someone like him (Jonathan) who served the country very faithfully, focused, and did what is expected in a democracy. In this declining situation, you consult him,” he said.

Obi had earlier visited former President Olusegun Obasanjo and Ibrahim Babangida, among others, as part of his engagements with former Nigerian leaders.

He refused to disclose in detail, the outcome of the meeting, but simply added that Jonathan wished the country well.
“He wished that we had a free, fair, credible election.

“There can’t be a one-party system. He cannot support such a thing. Nobody can claim to be more of a democrat in this country than Jonathan,” Obi said.

He however stated that the former president has not endorsed him for president in 2027 because he has not come for that.

“We’re not talking about an endorsement yet. When I become a candidate, I’ll come back for endorsement. He wishes the country well. We are here to consult with him,” he added.

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Peace, Reconciliation Only Path To Progress In Ogoni land — Badey

Published

2 hours ago

April 27, 2026

EMMANUEL AGAJI

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Mr. Suage Badey, son of late Chief Albert Badey, former Secretary to the Rivers State Government, says peace and reconciliation remain the only pathway to sustainable development in Ogoni land.

Badey made the assertion on Saturday in Port Harcourt at the 90th posthumous birthday celebration of his father, alongside the unveiling of the Albert Badey Centre for Development and its inaugural lecture.

He said that the era of grievances and acrimony in Ogoni land should give way to unity and collective progress.

“This is the time to move forward. We have no more grudges in our hearts. There is no need for continuous acrimony,” he said.

Badey urged Ogoni leaders to embrace dialogue in resolving differences, stressing that unity was critical to the advancement of the people.

“As we move into peace, the lives of those committed to this course should not be endangered,” he added.

In case you had forgotten, Chief Albert Badey and three other prominent Ogoni leaders were killed on May 21, 1994, during a meeting at Giokoo in Gokana Local Government Area of Rivers.

Badey described his late father as a committed public servant who contributed significantly to the development of Ogoni land.

He said his father played key roles in the creation of four local government areas for the Ogoni people and the siting of a state polytechnic in Bori.

“If my father were alive, he would have called for forgiveness, even for those who took his life,” he said.

Badey said the establishment of the Albert Badey Centre for Development was aimed at immortalising his father and promoting development initiatives in the area.

“This project is inspired by his sacrifices and dedication to the people,” he said.

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Court Grants Accelerated Hearing In Trial Of Alleged Coup Plotters

Published

6 hours ago

April 27, 2026

EMMANUEL AGAJI

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The court fixed April 29, April 30, May 4, and May 5 for the commencement of trial proceedings and the hearing of bail applications filed by the defendants.

Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court, Abuja, has granted an accelerated hearing in the trial of six suspects accused of plotting to overthrow President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

The court fixed April 29, April 30, May 4, and May 5 for the commencement of trial proceedings and the hearing of bail applications filed by the defendants.

During proceedings, the Attorney General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, informed the court that the prosecution had witnesses available, subject to the convenience of the court.
Counsel for the first defendant, Mohammed Ilayepo, indicated that his client’s bail application was due for a hearing.

Justice Abdulmalik, however, ruled that the trial would commence before any bail applications were considered.
Counsel for the second, third, and sixth defendants, Paul Erokoro, A. I. Yeru, and N. S. Diri, respectively, expressed reservations about their readiness to proceed, citing the short notice given to them and the complex nature of the case.

Justice Abdulmalik then directed all counsel to agree on dates suitable for a speedy trial.

The court subsequently fixed the hearing dates for the accelerated trial.
The Federal Government had last Wednesday arraigned the suspects.

The defendants, including Major General Ibrahim Gana (retd), who was in a wheelchair; retired naval captain Erasmus Victor, Inspector Ahmed Ibrahim, Zekeri Umoru, Bukar Goni, and Abdulkadir Sani, pleaded not guilty to the 13-count charge when it was read in their hearing.

Following their plea of not guilty, Fagbemi asked that they be remanded in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS) and for an expeditious trial.

Justice Abdulmalik, therefore, ordered an accelerated trial and that the defendants be placed in the custody of the DSS.

The case was adjourned to April 27 for trial and an accelerated hearing.
The government filed a 13-count charge against the suspects last Tuesday before the court against the suspects.

Also listed in the charge, but said to be at large, was a former Minister of Petroleum, Timiprye Sylva.

The charge, filed by the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation and signed by the Director of Public Prosecutions, Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), accused the defendants of offences ranging from alleged treason and terrorism to failure to disclose security intelligence and money laundering linked to terrorism financing.
The prosecution alleged that the defendants conspired in 2025 “to levy war against the state to overpower the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” an offence punishable under Section 37(2) of the Criminal Code.

Earlier, journalists were barred from covering the trial of six alleged coup plotters, raising concerns about the transparency in handling the matter.
Judiciary correspondents were on Monday left uncertain about developments in the case, particularly as the suspects’ bail application was pending before the court.