Crime
JUST IN: Largest Consignment of Heroin Intercepted by NDLEA at Lagos Airport
Members of an organized criminal organization that specializes in trafficking heroin across Nigeria, South Africa, Mozambique, Europe and America have been arrest by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA.
The arrest was made in a 12-day well-coordinated operation leading to the seizure of the single largest consignment of heroin at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, MMIA Ikeja Lagos.
NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, Brig Gen Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd) made the disclosure at a press conference in Lagos on Tuesday 27th February 2024.
According to Marwa, “It started on February 10, 2024, when NDLEA operatives of the Murtala Mohammed International Airport Command intercepted a suspicious package at the SAHCO Import Shed of the airport’s Cargo Terminal. The consignment was concealed in 15 cartons of 2300-watt metal cutting machines. Each carton was stocked with three blocks of high-grade heroin. In total, we recovered 45 blocks of the illicit substance with a total weight of 49.70kg.
“After the discovery, we were methodical and meticulous in our investigations. We started with the arrest of the freight agent whose name is Olowolagba Wasiu Babatunde. It turned out that he was hired for clearing services by Mattpee Logistics, a company operated by one Mr. Kola resident in South Africa.
“Next, we conducted a follow up operation at the company’s warehouse in the Shogunle area of Oshodi, Lagos, and arrested the warehouse manager, whose name is Ajayi Imole Moses. Thereafter, we set up an ambush for the expected receiver of the consignment who was duly arrested when he showed up for collection. This receiver, whose name is Adinnu Felix Chinedu, confessed during interrogation, that he is the main distributor for a drug syndicate whose membership is spread across Nigeria.
“He admitted that he usually conveyed the consignment to a dedicated warehouse located in Ayobo. That place served as a workshop where he would dismantle the consignment and remove the drugs from the machines. Thereafter, he would wait for a list of various recipients to be forwarded to him from South Africa by the head of the criminal group.
“Our operatives did due diligence by conducting a thorough search of the warehouse which led to the recovery of 56 similar cartons of the cutting machines that were used previously as modes of concealment to ferry heroin into Nigeria. At this point, it was clear that we are dealing with a syndicate that operates in other countries. By the time, we were done exploring various leads we had, we unravelled an organised criminal network that operates in South Africa, Mozambique, Nigeria and parts of Europe and America.
“This syndicate has a wide network in Nigeria because the consignments we seized were marked with several codenames, showing that they belonged to different members of this organised criminal group. Furthermore, in our follow-up operation, we uncovered from the suspect a long list of receivers of illicit drugs. In the end, we were able to identify the kingpin of the syndicate here in Nigeria and his name is Reginald Peter Chidiebere. Our investigations showed that he owns the Golden Platinum Hotel and Suite, located at 16 Reginald Peter Chidiebere Street, Hope Estate, Ago Palace.”
The NDLEA boss said several days of surveillance on the hotel culminated in a raid operation on Monday, February 19 in which another drug mule, Igboanugo Chukwuebuka Thankgod, was found in possession of two parcels of 2.2kg heroin with codes similar to the ones found on the seized drug shipment, bringing the total seizure to 51.90 kilograms. “He readily confessed that he was invited by Mr. Reginald Peter Chidiebere to the hotel on Sunday, February 18, 2024. He was lodged in one of the rooms and was later summoned by the receptionist to meet a guest, from whom Reginald Peter Chidiebere had informed him over the phone to receive a package. This sequence of action was confirmed by a review of the CCTV at the hotel”, he stated.
He further explained that pre-emptive actions so far taken against members of the syndicate include freezing a total of 107 bank accounts associated with 14 members of the cartel as well as N119,582,928.31 found in some of the already traced bank accounts. He added that the hotel and a mansion linked to the head of the syndicate in Nigeria, Reginald Peter Chidiebere and another mansion linked to the head of the syndicate in Mozambique, Festus Ibewuike located in Ago Palace area had already been marked for forfeiture to the Federal Government.
He said the measure yielded further fruit on Thursday 22nd February when a female member of the syndicate and wife of Festus Ibewuike, Mrs. Confidence Ndidiamaka, Ibewuike who is one of those to collect part of the consignment from Adinnu Felix Chinedu, was arrested at Ago Palace area on last Thursday.
“When they were brought face to face, he (Adinnu Felix Chinedu) immediately identified her as one of the members of the criminal syndicate who had received similar packages of heroin with the syndicate’s logo from him on two different occasions. Though she denied knowing Adinnu or receiving anything from him before, investigation later revealed how her husband identified as Festus Ibewuike who is a top kingpin and currently residing in Mozambique used to send drug consignments to her through Adinnu Felix Chinedu.
“With pictorial evidence of different parcels with different codes and using other methodologies, we were able to confirm several instructions from her husband to her regarding illicit drug shipments already collected before. A search was promptly conducted in their residence located at the Ago Palace area, Festac Town where a Toyota Venza car was recovered as well as several documents including, bank and property documents belonging to Festus Ibewuike.” Their mansion in Ago Palace area has also been marked for forfeiture to the Federal Government.
As part of efforts to ensure all those involved are brought to book, Marwa assured that “NDLEA has shared comprehensive intelligence with our South African counterparts for necessary action regarding the other members of the group living in that country.”
He said “there is a parallel between this seizure and the September 18, 2022 seizure of 2,139.5kg cocaine in an Ikorodu warehouse. That was the biggest singular cocaine seizure in the history of NDLEA. This present bust is the largest single heroin seizure at the MMIA so far.”
While commending the synergy and support the NDLEA enjoys from other stakeholders like Customs, the military, Immigration, Police, DSS, NSCDC, FRSC, NAFDAC, Aviation Security (AVSEC) and the media as well as international partners, Marwa said the Agency won’t relent in its offensive action targeting drug barons and their networks.
“In our renewed fight against drug trafficking, our offensive action is specifically targeting drug barons to disrupt distribution networks and uproot the drug pipelines in the country. To this end, we have arrested 48 barons in three years, 15 of whom are already serving jail terms while the rest are facing trials in court. This should serve as a warning to others that there is no hiding place in Nigeria for anyone involved in the illicit drug trade.
“NDLEA is resolved to end the reign of drug barons and disconnect Nigeria from the global drug trafficking network. We have maintained a consistently strong performance, every week. With this heroin bust, we are sending a warning again to drug traffickers within and outside the county that if they fail to desist from the illicit drug trade, the long arm of the law will catch up with them.”
Crime
BREAKING: Nnamdi Kanu Sacks All Lawyers, To Represent Himself
The leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has informed the Federal High Court in Abuja that he will personally conduct his defense in the ongoing terrorism case brought against him by the Federal Government.
This declaration came during Thursday’s proceedings, following the withdrawal of his legal team, led by senior advocate Kanu Agabi (SAN), alongside other Senior Advocates of Nigeria who had been representing him.
The courtroom was thrown into mild surprise when Mr. Kanu told Justice James Omotosho that he intended to take charge of his own defense, stating his decision to act as his own counsel moving forward.
Justice Omotosho, in response, offered to assign a court-appointed lawyer to assist him, but Mr. Kanu declined the offer, insisting that he would proceed without any legal representation.
The court subsequently adjourned to allow Mr. Kanu to prepare for his defense under the new arrangement.
Mr. Kanu, who has been in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS) since his re-arrest and extradition to Nigeria in 2021, faces multiple charges bordering on terrorism, treasonable felony, and incitement.
The self-proclaimed IPOB leader has consistently denied all allegations, maintaining that his movement’s agitation for the independence of Biafra is rooted in self-determination and not in violence or terrorism.
The case, which has drawn both national and international attention, is expected to resume in the coming weeks as Mr. Kanu opens his defense without a legal team.
Crime
Indonesia to Repatriate British Grandmother on Death Row, Says Official
Indonesia will sign an agreement on Tuesday to repatriate two British nationals convicted of drug-related crimes, including Lindsay Sandiford, a grandmother sentenced to death, according to a senior Indonesian government source.
“The practical arrangement will be signed today. The transfer will be done immediately after the technical side is agreed,” the official told AFP, naming Sandiford and Shahab Shahabadi, 35, as the individuals to be returned to the UK.
Sandiford was sentenced to death in 2013 after she was caught smuggling cocaine worth over $2.1 million into Bali from Thailand. The drugs were discovered concealed in a false bottom of her suitcase. Shahabadi, arrested in 2014, is currently serving a life sentence for separate drug offences.
Although the Indonesian source listed Sandiford’s age as 68, public records indicate she is 69.
A joint press conference with Indonesian officials and the British ambassador to Indonesia was scheduled for later Tuesday, according to the Coordinating Ministry for Legal, Human Rights, Immigration and Correctional Affairs.
Tabloid Attention and Personal Testimony
Sandiford’s case received widespread attention in the UK after she admitted to the offences but claimed she was coerced by a drug syndicate that threatened to kill her son. In a 2015 article published in The Mail on Sunday, Sandiford wrote from prison about her fear of imminent execution:
“My execution is imminent, and I know I might die at any time now. I could be taken tomorrow from my cell. I have started to write goodbye letters to members of my family.”
Originally from Redcar, in northeast England, she also wrote that she planned to sing the Perry Como hit “Magic Moments” before facing the firing squad.
During her time in prison, Sandiford reportedly became close friends with Andrew Chan, one of the “Bali Nine” Australian drug smugglers who was executed in 2015.
Policy Shift on Repatriation
The planned transfer follows recent moves by the Prabowo Subianto administration to repatriate foreign nationals serving harsh sentences for drug crimes. In December 2024, Mary Jane Veloso, a Filipina who spent nearly 15 years on death row, was allowed to return home. In February 2025, Serge Atlaoui, a French national, was repatriated after 18 years on death row.
Indonesia, known for having some of the world’s strictest drug laws, last carried out executions in 2016, when three Nigerian citizens and an Indonesian were executed by firing squad. As of early November 2025, more than 90 foreign nationals remain on death row in the country, all for drug-related offences.
The British Embassy in Jakarta declined to comment, directing inquiries to the Indonesian government.
Indonesian authorities have recently signalled the potential resumption of executions, after nearly a decade-long de facto moratorium.
Crime
Bauchi: Boy,17, plucks sister’s eyes for money ritual
The victim’s father told investigators that the suspect lured his daughter, who shares the same parents, into the bush, where he attacked her and forcefully plucked her eyes.
Bauchi State Police Command, has arrested a teenager, Auwal Dahiru, aged 17, and five others for having forcefully plucked her sister’s eyes for money ritual.
His accomplishes are Mohammed Rabiu, aged 19; Saleh Ibrahim, aged 20; Nasiru Muhammad of Soro town, Ganjuwa LGA; Hassan Garba of Soro town, Ganjuwa LGA; and Garba Dahiru, aged 43, of Soro town.
The Command PPRO, CSP Mohammed Ahmed Wakil, in a statement made available to journalists in Bauchi on Monday, stated that Auwalu lured his seven-year-old sister to the bush, where her eyes were forcefully removed for ritual purposes.
The PPRO added that on 17 October 2025, at about 18:00 hours, one Muhammad Adamu of Bayan Dutse Village, Wailo, Kubi Ward, Ganjuwa LGA, Bauchi State, reported at the Soro Divisional Police Headquarters that on the same date at about 20:00 hours his daughter, Rukayya Muhammad, aged seven years, was attacked with the intention of killing her and an attempt was made to pluck out her eyes.
“Upon receipt of the report, a team of detectives led by CSP Aliyu Mohammad Goni, Divisional Police Officer (DPO), Soro Division, immediately dispatched to the scene, where the suspects were arrested.
At the same time, the victim was quickly evacuated to Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital (ATBUTH), Bauchi, for medical treatment.”
A preliminary investigation’s findings revealed that the seven-year-old girl, Rukayya Muhammad, tragically lost her eyesight permanently after her elder brother allegedly removed both of her eyes in a money ritual, reportedly in a desperate attempt to gain wealth.
The victim’s father told investigators that the suspect lured his daughter, who shares the same parents, into the bush, where he attacked her and forcefully plucked her eyes.
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