NDLEA busts cocaine warehouse, seizes N193bn worth of crack in Lagos

…arrests 4 drug barons, 1 other

National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), on Monday busted a major warehouse in a secluded estate in Ikorodu area of Lagos where 1.8 tons ,1,855 kilograms, of illicit drug worth more than $278, 250,000, equivalent of about N194, 775,000,000 in street value were seized.
Director, Media and Advocacy NDLEA, Femi Babafemi, in a statement on Monday said: “At least four drug barons including a Jamaican and the warehouse manager have been arrested in the well coordinated and intelligence led operation that lasted two days across different locations in Lagos state. “Kingpins of the cocaine cartel in custody include; Messrs Soji Jibril, 69, an indigene of Ibadan, Oyo State; Emmanuel Chukwu, 65, who hails from Ekwulobia, Anambra State; Wasiu Akinade, 53, from Ibadan, Oyo State; Sunday Oguntelure, 53, from Okitipupa, Ondo State and Kelvin Smith, 42, a native of Kingston, Jamaica.
“They are all members of an international drug syndicate that the Agency has been trailing since 2018.”
Babafemi further stated that the warehouse which is located at 6, Olukuola crescent, Solebo estate, Ikorodu, was first raided on Sunday , while the barons were picked from hotels and their hideouts in different parts of Lagos between Sunday night and Monday morning.
He said preliminary investigation reveals the class A drugs were warehoused in the residential estate from where the cartel was trying to sell them to buyers in Europe, Asia and other parts of the world. They were stored in 10 travel bags and 13 drums.
Babafemi noted that officers and men of the Agency involved in the extensive investigation included those of the American Drug Enforcement Administration (US-DEA). Chairman and Chief Executive of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd) praised arrest as a historical blow to the drug cartels and a strong warning that they will all go down if they fail to realise that the game has changed.