LAGOS, Nigeria (Chatnewstv.com) — A wanted drug baron who masked his operations as legitimate business has been arrested in Lagos after weeks of surveillance, Nigeria’s anti-narcotics agency said Sunday.
Frank Chijioke Ibemesi, 42, known as “Chisco Bee,” was taken into custody early Saturday at his Daisy Garden Hotel in the Isolo area, according to a statement from the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency. “His arrest followed sustained intelligence and surveillance on his criminal network,” NDLEA spokesman Femi Babafemi said.
Agents later led Ibemesi to a warehouse nearby where they found 42 jumbo bags and four cartons of Loud, a potent strain of cannabis, weighing 1,762.8 kilograms. Cash seized at the scene included 11,600 dollars, 2,000 British pounds, 2,200 euros and 50 Canadian dollars.
In a separate operation in Osun state, NDLEA operatives foiled an attempt by a syndicate to move more than 11,135 kilograms of processed skunk from the Orita Apeje and Araromi Okeodo forest reserve following several days of surveillance. Two trucks used to load the drugs, a Volvo and a Mercedes, were impounded and seven suspects were arrested.
Across Edo state, agents recovered a total of 1,902.1 kilograms of cannabis in multiple raids. A suspect, Felix Edah, 45, was arrested along the Benin Akure road after 494 kilograms were found in a Mercedes Benz, while another man, Lucky Abagha, 51, was detained with 552 kilograms in a similar vehicle.
In Ogun state, four suspects were arrested along the Ijebu Ode expressway with 68 kilograms of skunk and 3.15 kilograms of methamphetamine. In Taraba state, officers seized 172 kilograms of cannabis from Danjuma Tukura, 50, and another 84 kilograms from a suspect in Takum.
At the Aliyu Mustapha International Airport in Yola, Adamawa state, NDLEA officers recovered 396,000 tramadol capsules from a 50-year-old suspect. In Nasarawa, 785 kilograms of cannabis were evacuated from a warehouse linked to a fugitive dealer.
In Lagos, two suspects, Jamiu Kunle Kardoso and Oriyomi Waliu, were arrested with 65.15 kilograms of Canadian Loud, while another man was detained with 141 kilograms of Ghana grown cannabis in the Oyingbo area.
Kwara state operatives intercepted a truck carrying 197 blocks of cannabis and 155 cartons of rubber solution along the Ilorin Jebba expressway. The driver, Umar Yakubu, was arrested. A separate commercial bus was stopped the previous day with 20 blocks of cannabis hidden inside a 50 liter container.
As enforcement operations intensified nationwide, NDLEA officers also expanded drug education campaigns in schools, religious centers and workplaces as part of its War Against Drug Abuse initiative.
NDLEA Chairman Brig Gen Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd) praised the teams involved for their “balanced approach” to combating drug trafficking and prevention. “I urge our officers across the country to sustain the momentum,” he said.
