Crime
NDLEA arrests artistes’ manager, businessman who sell drugs at Lekki, Lagos Island clubs
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, have arrested a Lekki-based artistes’ manager and his Ikoyi businessman accomplice who specialize in distributing illicit drugs to fun seekers at VIP night clubs and lounges in Lekki and Island axis of Lagos state.
Their arrest followed an intelligence about a shipment of Colorado, a synthetic 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 23rd July.
During preliminary interview with the suspect, he confessed 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 beside the drug business, he also organizes shows for artistes 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 their dragnet for him at the airport. He eventually arrived into the waiting arms of NDLEA officers on Thursday 27th July 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 foodstuff. 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 7.8kg concealed in 66 bottles of skin lightening lotion was thwarted by vigilant operatives who intercepted him while 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 6.00kg skunk hidden in a bag of food stuff. A follow up operation led to the arrest of a staff of Toprano Hotel, Ikeja, Ibigbami Temitope Oluwatobi who was fingered in the drug trafficking scheme. A consignment of 5.70kg codeine syrup going to the United Kingdom was on Thursday 27th July seized 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 8.5kg skunk well concealed in a vehicle engine block going to Dubai, UAE was on Tuesday 18th July intercepted by NDLEA officers of the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation, DOGI, attached to courier companies in Lagos.
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 25th July.
Two containers of the same substance imported from China by the suspect was earlier seized on 13th July at the Apapa port. The third shipment was intercepted during a joint examination of the container marked SUDU7431605 containing 8,336 cannisters 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 247.5kg cannabis while a Golf Car conveying the same substance weighing 308kg was intercepted at Airport Junction along Akure-Ogbese Road on Wednesday 26th July with a suspect Farouk Umar, 38, arrested.
A 32-year-old suspect, Chukwuma Nnaji was also arrested with 47kg skunk in a warehouse at Onuogba Eke, Ishielu LGA, Enugu state on Saturday 29th July, 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 49.415kg cannabis sativa, 127.7grams of methamphetamine and 15grams of cocaine during a raid operation on Friday 28th July, while men of 9th Brigade, Nigerian Army transferred three suspects: Olasande Olutosin, Oleh Chiagozie and Obamuro Baiyeri arrested with 2,608.3kg cannabis sativa and the truck conveying the substance to the Lagos state Command of NDLEA on Tuesday 25th July.
In Ogun state, operatives on Thursday 26th July uncovered another skuchies factory in Sagamu where a suspect Femi Isiaka was arrested. Recovered from the factory include:
37kg Cannabis; 195 pills of Tramadol; 5,000 tabs of Diazepam; 216 tabs of Rophynol 216;
204 litres of skuchies; 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 Gwagwalada – Abaji road in the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, on Saturday 29th July.
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.
The Department of State Services (DSS) has arraigned former Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, on a five-count amended charge bordering on an alleged breach of national security.
El-Rufai, who was arraigned before Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court in Abuja, pleaded not guilty to all counts.
When the case was called, counsel to the DSS, Oluwole Aladedoye, informed the court that the matter was fixed for the defendant to take his plea.
Aladedoye, however, told the court that a further amended five-count charge had been filed on April 13.
The lawyer prayed the court to substitute it for the earlier three-count charge.
Responding, counsel to El-Rufai, Oluwole Iyamu, said he had been served with the amended charge and did not oppose the application.
The judge subsequently struck out the earlier three-count charge.
After the counts were read, the former governor pleaded not guilty, and Aladedoye sought three consecutive trial dates.
Iyamu, however, objected to the request for consecutive trial days for the commencement of trial.
He submitted that since the defendant had been in the custody of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), access to him within that period might be difficult.
According to him, the proposed schedule would not be in the best interest of the defence.
Iyamu also informed the court of a bail application filed on February 17.
However, the further affidavit in support of the bail application was not in the court file, prompting the judge to stand down the matter for Iyamu to address the issue.
Upon resumption, the further affidavit was located.
The DSS stated that it did not oppose the bail application.
The prosecution then moved an application seeking an order to conceal the identities of two witnesses expected to testify.
The DSS requested that:
• The identities of the witnesses should not appear in public court records.
• Pseudonyms should be used during the trial.
The prosecution argued that the witnesses’ families could be vulnerable to attack from persons sympathetic to El-Rufai.
The defence opposed the request through an application, written address, and further affidavit, urging the court to dismiss it.
The defence argued that it is the constitutional right of an accused person to know his accusers.
It further submitted that there was no evidence before the court to suggest that El-Rufai had a cult-like following or posed any threat.
Counsel stated that the defendant had dedicated his life to public service and warned that granting a blanket anonymity order could cause serious prejudice to the accused.
The defence also applied for an order directing the prosecution to furnish it with proof of evidence to prepare for trial.
The prosecution opposed the request through a counter-affidavit.
It argued that the materials sought by the defence were unrelated to the prosecution’s filed processes.
The defence informed the court that it had also filed an application to quash the charge.
• Legal arguments were raised that an application to quash cannot be brought after a plea has been taken.
The prosecution filed a written address urging the court to dismiss the application for lacking merit.
The case has been adjourned till May 18 for continuation of hearing.
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Crime
Bandits storm Zamfara communities, kill 14
The bandits were said to have carried out the operation for about four hours before they left the communities.
Suspected bandits this afternoon invaded two communities in Bukkuyum Local Government Area of Zamfara State and killed fourteen people in a sporadic shooting.
Eyewitness accounts said that the bandits stormed the Rubuki and Yargalma communities on motorcycles in the afternoon and started fire sporadic gunshots as well as setting ablaze houses with occupants, vehicles and food stuff in the troubled communities.
The bandits were said to have carried out the operation for about four hours before they left the communities.
It was learned that 9 people were killed at Rubuki while five others were killed at the Yargalma community.
They left eight people with different degrees of injuries who are now receiving medical care at the hospital.
Few weeks after President Bola Tinubu visited Plateau State and promised justice for victims of serial attacks, the State Government on Friday filed charges against five suspects arrested by the Department of State Services (DSS) in connection with the March 2026 killings of several persons in Angwa- Rukuba, Jos North LGA of the state.
The government filed charges ofcriminal conspiracy to commit terrorism and other related offences against the quartet of Isa Umar Ibrahim, Auwalu Abubakar aka Auwalu Dogo, and Musa Abubakar Ibrahim aka Yaroro.
On his part, Adamu Isa Alhassan, who is one of the five defendants, was charged with criminal conspiracy, culpable homicide, illegal possession of firearms, and illegally dealing in arms and ammunition.
They were arrested between April 3 and April 10, 2026.The State Attorney General, Philemon Audu Daffi, who filed the charges, said the actions of the four men were “contrary to Section 269 and Punishable under Section 270 of the Penal Code Law of Plateau State, 2017.
“The particulars of offence read, “That you, Isa Umar Ibrahim, Musa Abubakar Ibrahim of Riyom Local Government Area, Auwalu Abubakar (A.K.A Auwalu Dogo) of Jos North Local Government Area, Musa Abubakar Ibrahim (A.K.A Yaroro) of Jos North Local Government Areas of Plateau State; and one Ado Ibrahim (Now at Large) of Riyom Local Government Area of Plateau State, on the 28th day of March, 2025 at Farin Gada, Jos North Local Government Area, did conspire amongst yourselves to commit offences relating to terrorism when you planned, organized, facilitated, aided, and contributed money to carry out the attack in Angwan Rukuba, Jos North Local Government Area of Plateau State within the Jurisdiction of this Honourable Court; you thereby committed the above offence.
“That you, Isa Umar Ibrahim, Musa Abubakar Ibrahim of Riyom Local Government Area, Auwalu Abubakar (A.K.A Auwalu Dogo) of Jos North Local Government Area, Musa Abubakar Ibrahim (A.K.A Yaroro) of Jos North Local Government Areas of Plateau State; and one Ado Ibrahim (Now at Large) of Riyom Local Government Area of Plateau State, on the 28th day of March, 2025 at Farin Gada, Jos North Local Government Area, did commit the offence of terrorism when you planned, organized, facilitated, aided, contributed and received money to carry out an attack in Angwan Rukuba, which led to the death of over thirty (30) people in Jos North Local Government Area of Plateau State within the Jurisdiction of this Honourable Court.
“Part of the particulars of Alhassan’s offence read, “That you Adamu Isah Alhassan together with one Ibrahim Musa (Now at Large), Imarana Sa’idu (Now at Large), Yusuf Sa’idu (Now at Large) Aliyu Usaini (Now at Large), Yahuza Adamu (Now at Large), Mubarak Yunusa (Now at Large), Yakubu, whose surname is unknown (Now at Large) and others also at large between the months of January to December, 2025 and in January, 2026 at Gwang, Rin Ward, Bachit and Bangai Villages of Riyom Local Government Area and Vom in Jos South Local Government Areas of Plateau State within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court did commit an illegal act to wit: Culpable Homicide Punishable with Death, when you armed yourselves with guns, attacked and killed the residents of Gwang, Rin Ward, Bachit and Bangai Villages of Riyom Local Government Area and Vom in Jos South Local Government Area of Plateau State, and you thereby committed the above offence.”
Recall that, on Friday March 28, 2025, no fewer than 30 persons including children were killed after suspected herders attacked some communities in Bokkos and Bassa Local Government Areas and their environs, of the State.
Following the killings, many called for the cancellation of a state-,organized programme,”
Experience Plateau, Arts Meets Fashion.”Brushing aside the calls, Governor Caleb Mutfwang said cancelling the event would satisfy the agenda of the attackers.
Remarked the governor, “Last week, Bokkos Local Government Area came under renewed attack by murderers who are desperate to break our spirit.
“Many advised that we suspend this function, but we realized that these attackers intend to keep us in perpetual mourning, to force us indoors, and to shackle our collective spirit.
“But I said no! Life must go on. Plateau must move forward by the grace of God.
The genocide on the Plateau will come to an end. What is happening is not a farmer-herder conflict.
Let me be clear: it is genocide, and I urge the international community to take note,” declared the governor.
During the President’s visit early this month, he met with victims of the attacks, assessed the damage, and promised justice for those who suffered losses.
“We are optimistic that ongoing interventions will help restore lasting peace,” assured the President, even as he charged citizens of the state to be vigilant
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