Four drug kingpins - Ogbuji Christian Ifeanyi, Iloduba Augustine Chinonye, Shuaibu Nuhu Isa (a.k.a Don), and Zidon Zurga; have been convicted and sentenced to a combined total of 95 years in prison by the Federal High Court in Lagos and Yola, Adamawa State.
The convictions were for trafficking cocaine and skunk worth over N4.6 billion.
Ogbuji Christian Ifeanyi, a 48-year-old businessman, was intercepted by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos on Wednesday, September 18, 2024. He was found with 817 wraps of cocaine weighing 19.40 kilogrammes, with an estimated street value of N4.6 billion.
This arrest came barely 16 months after Ogbuji was first arrested and convicted for ingesting 93 pellets of cocaine. He was initially arrested at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA) in Abuja on Wednesday, May 10, 2023, upon arrival from Uganda via Addis Ababa. He was convicted on July 13, 2023, and sentenced to two years imprisonment with an option of a N3 million fine, which he paid and was released.
However, Ogbuji returned to crime and was arrested again at the Lagos airport with the large consignment of cocaine. He was arraigned before Justice Yellim Bogoro of the Federal High Court, Lagos, in charge number FHC/L/845C on January 16, 2025. On February 28, he was sentenced to five years imprisonment on count one with an option of a N7 million fine and 10 years imprisonment on count two without an option of a fine.
If he fails to pay the N7 million fine, he will serve a total of 15 years in jail consecutively. The court also ordered the forfeiture of monetary exhibits and other items found on him at the time of his arrest.
In another case, 51-year-old Iloduba Augustine Chinonye was arrested by NDLEA operatives on New Year’s Eve, December 31, 2021, at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport in Enugu for cocaine trafficking. He was found to have ingested 58 wraps of cocaine, 48 of which he excreted in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and the remaining 10 in NDLEA custody after his arrest on January 1, 2022.
Iloduba was arraigned on two counts in charge number FHC/EN/CR/18/2022 before Justice Folashade Giwa Ogunbanjo of the Federal High Court, Enugu. After three years of diligent prosecution, he was convicted and sentenced to five years imprisonment on each count, totaling 10 years, which will run concurrently from the date of his conviction on Wednesday, March 5, 2025.
Shuaibu Nuhu Isa (a.k.a Don), 55, and Zidon Zurga, 50, were arrested by NDLEA operatives on November 25, 2024, along the Numan-Yola road with 500.800kg of skunk, a strain of cannabis, concealed in a Toyota Hilux vehicle marked Lagos NT 829 AAA and a Prado SUV with a fake presidency number plate 01B-266 FG.
They were arraigned before Justice Bala Usman in charge number FHC/YL/150/2024 and convicted on February 7, 2025. Each was sentenced to 35 years imprisonment on two counts, bringing their combined jail terms to 70 years, with an option to pay a fine of N25 million each. The court also ordered the interim forfeiture of the two vehicles used in trafficking the illicit drug consignment.
Reacting to the convictions, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohammed Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended the trial courts and the teams of officers who investigated and prosecuted the cases. He praised the MMIA Strategic Command in Lagos, the Akanu Ibiam International Airport Special Area Command in Enugu, and the Adamawa State Command for their diligence and professionalism.
Marwa stated, “The conviction and the forfeiture of the convicts’ instruments of crime will further strengthen the deterrent effect of our ongoing effort to totally dismantle every drug network in the country.”
DAILY MENTOR reports that these convictions underscore the NDLEA’s commitment to combating drug trafficking and related crimes in Nigeria. The sentences serve as a stern warning to drug kingpins and their networks, reinforcing the agency’s resolve to ensure a drug-free society.