ABUJA, Nigeria (Chatnewstv.com) — Saudi authorities have released three Nigerian pilgrims arrested in Jeddah last month on allegations of drug trafficking, Nigeria’s anti-narcotics agency said Wednesday.
The freed pilgrims — Maryam Hussain Abdullahi, Abdullahi Bahijja Aminu and Abdulhamid Saddieq — had been in detention for four weeks after bags tagged with their names at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport in Kano were found to contain illicit drugs, according to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).
Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa, NDLEA chairman and chief executive officer, said the release followed “relentless engagements” with Saudi Arabia’s General Directorate of Narcotics Control.
“The biggest support of our effort on this case came from President Tinubu who is committed to ensuring that every Nigerian gets their deserved respect and fair treatment wherever they are across the world,” Marwa said in a statement. “That is what has come to play in this case — that no Nigerian is unjustly punished for crimes they know nothing about anywhere in the world.”
The NDLEA said its investigation revealed that a syndicate operating at the Kano airport had planted the drugs in the pilgrims’ luggage. Authorities arrested suspected ringleader Mohammed Ali Abubakar, known as Bello Karama, along with three others — Celestina Emmanuel Yayock, Abdulbasit Adamu Sagagi and Jazuli Kabir. Charges have been filed against them, the agency said.
Marwa praised Saudi authorities for honoring the bilateral agreement between both nations’ narcotics agencies and credited Nigeria’s top officials for supporting the intervention, including Attorney General Lateef Fagbemi, Foreign Affairs Minister Yusuf Tuggar, Aviation Minister Festus Keyamo, and National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu.
One of the pilgrims was freed Sept. 14 and the other two the following day, the NDLEA said.
