Security forces have captured Abu Baraa, the notorious leader of the Ansaru terrorist network, after an intensive operation that spanned several months.
National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu disclosed the development during a special briefing at the National Counter-Terrorism Centre in Abuja.
Ribadu, who was flanked by service chiefs and intelligence heads, said the operation followed a prolonged surveillance effort that began in May and culminated in Baraa’s capture in July.
“I am glad to inform you that we have successfully concluded a high-risk, intelligence-led, counter-terrorism operation which led to the capture of the top leadership of Jama’atu Ansarul Muslimina fi-Biladis Sudan, commonly known as ANSARU, Nigeria’s Al-Qaeda affiliate,” Ribadu said.
He explained that Ansaru, which declared its presence publicly in Kano in 2012 after splintering from Boko Haram, originally presented itself as a “humane alternative” before turning to attacks on security operatives, civilians, and government facilities.
“The group publicly displayed the setting sun logo of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), signaling its ideological and operational alignment with global jihadist movements,” Ribadu added.
According to him, Ansaru had entrenched itself in both urban hideouts and forest camps, particularly around Kainji National Park, which spans Niger and Kwara states and extends into Benin Republic.
Category: Crime
Two Nigerians caught with $500k drugs in Lebanese hotel
At least, two Nigerians were arrested in July in Beirut, Lebanon, for allegedly smuggling 156 cocaine capsules, weighing about three kilograms, valued at more than $500,000.
PUNCH Metro learnt on Thursday that the suspects allegedly ingested the narcotics before being apprehended inside a hotel in the Kesrouan district, north of Beirut.
According to the Lebanese news outlet, L’Orient Today, the arrests were carried out by the country’s Central Bureau for Drug Control.
The agency disclosed on Wednesday that it had been investigating “an international organisation recruiting people to deliver cocaine to Lebanon,” noting that the operation ran “from Nigeria to Lebanon, transiting through Ethiopia.”
The Internal Security Forces said the two Nigerians, identified only as R. A. (born 1996) and L. N. (born 1977), arrived at Beirut’s international airport at dawn on July 24, 2025.
“They had swallowed cocaine capsules and went directly to a hotel in Kesrouan to extract the capsules and hand them over to a local dealer,” the ISF statement read.
Investigators, who had been tracking their movements, were said to have arrested the pair “in the act.” The ISF confirmed that “156 capsules of pure cocaine” were seized, estimating their value at “more than half a million U.S. dollars.”
The agency added that the bust followed an earlier arrest on May 22, when a man attempting to smuggle narcotics into Beirut from an African country was caught at the airport with drugs hidden in his suitcases and swallowed in capsule form.
PUNCH Metro reports that arrests of Nigerians abroad for crimes ranging from scams and rape to drug trafficking have been on the rise.
Last month, the Ghana Immigration Service confirmed the arrest of about 50 Nigerians for alleged cyberfraud and human trafficking during a coordinated operation at McCarthy Hills in the Ga South Municipality of Accra.
The landlord of the property where the suspects were found was also apprehended.
Ondo Police Arraign Cross-Dresser, Two Others Over Alleged Homosexual Acts
The Ondo State Police Command on Thursday arraigned a 23-year-old cross-dresser and content creator, Taiwo Austine, before an Akure Chief Magistrate’s Court over alleged involvement in homosexual activities.
Austine appeared in court alongside two other defendants — Haris Abubakar, 25, and Matthew Ogwu, 32 — on a three-count charge bordering on conspiracy and homosexuality.
Prosecutor, Inspector Abayomi Jejeniwa, told the court that the defendants, along with others still at large, were arrested in Akure last month following investigations that allegedly linked them to homosexual acts. He further alleged that between April 15 and 17, 2025, the accused engaged in conduct described as “unnatural for human beings.”
According to the charge sheet, the trio conspired to commit a felony — homosexuality — contrary to Sections 516, 214, and 215 of the Criminal Code, Cap. 37, Vol. 1, Laws of Ondo State, 2006. Ogwu was also accused of attempting to engage in such an act.
The defendants pleaded not guilty.
Following the plea, the prosecutor requested a trial date to enable him to present two witnesses and prepare his case. Defence counsel, A.W. Lawoye, applied for bail on liberal terms, arguing that the allegations had yet to be proven.
Magistrate B.A. Alphonso adjourned the case to August 11 for bail consideration and ordered that the defendants remain in police custody until then.
NDLEA arrests wanted General Overseer inside church in Lagos over cross-border drug trafficking
Nigeria – The eagle-eyed operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, hasarrested the founder and General Overseer of The Turn of Mercy Church, Prophet Adefolusho Aanu Olasele (alias Abbas Ajakaiye) after months of fleeing abroad to evade arrest for masterminding multiple shipments of illicit drugs into Nigeria.
Confirming the arrest, the anti-narcotics agency spokesman, Femi Babafemi stated that, Prophet Adefolusho was arrested at his church located in Okun Ajah, Ogombo road, Lekki area of Lagos on Sunday 3rd August 2025 by NDLEA officers who waited for him since morning to conclude the Sunday worship service in the evening before moving in on him the moment he stepped out of the church premises.
“The arrest came after he had evaded arrest twice and fled to Ghana to hide since June when operatives started trailing him following the seizure of two shipments of Ghana Loud, a strain of cannabis linked to him.
“The first seizure of 200kg of the psychoactive substance was made at Okun Ajah beach on 4th June 2025 while another consignment of 700kg of same substance was recovered from his delivery van on 6th July 2025.
“In his statement, he admitted ferrying the illicit consignments through the waterways from Ghana into Nigeria, adding that he had fled to the West African country to hide after he escaped arrest twice in the recent past”, Babafemi stated.
In another operation in Lagos, NDLEA operatives on Thursday 7th August raided an apartment at Kishi House 11 Layi Ajayi Bembe street, Parkview Estate Ikoyi where they arrested a suspect Benjamin Udo Ukoh and recovered 32 pouches of Canadian Loud, a strain of Cannabis with a total weight of 15.63kg.
In Nasarawa state, NDLEA operatives on Saturday 9th August recovered a large consignment of skunk, a strain of cannabis weighing 3,093 kilograms from the trio of Emmanuel Asoquo Johnny, 51; Okem Raphael, 33, and Chekwube Odo, 25, at New Karu area of the state.
While 29-year-old Nura Yahaya was nabbed at Geza area of Kumbotso Kano State with 639 blocks of skunk weighing 359kg on Friday 8th August, another suspect Umar Adamu Umar, 27,was taken into custody on Wednesday 6th August by NDLEA officers after seizing 9kg of Colorado, a synthetic strain of cannabis from him along Zaria-Kano road, Kano.
“In another interdiction operation in Kano, 20,000 pills of tramadol and 200 ampoules of diazepam injection were recovered from a suspect Usman Musa, 30, at Gadar Tamburawa along Zaria-Kano road on Friday 8th August.
“A raid at an uncompleted building located at Tudun Wadan Pantami in Gombe town, Gombe state on Friday 8th August led to the recovery of 550, 266 pills of opioids mainly tramadol while a suspect Usama Isah was arrested. The following day Saturday 9th August, another suspect Ibrahim Adamu, 23, was arrested by NDLEA officers along Potiskum road, Bajoga with 50,000 capsules of tramadol”, Babafemi disclosed.
In Edo state, as stated by Babafemi, a white Toyota Hiace bus marked YAB 5522 K coming from Onitsha Anambra and heading to Isanlu in Kogi was Wednesday 6th August intercepted at Ewu junction, Edo by NDLEA operatives who after a search recovered 23, 940 capsules of tramadol, 1,100 tablets of same opioid and 400 ampoules of pentazocine injection with a suspect Taiye Jethro arrested.
“In like manner, Commands and formations of the Agency across the country continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitization activities to schools, worship centres, work places and communities among others in the past week.
“These include: WADA enlightenment lecture to students and staff of Mind City College, Saki, Oyo; Gwagwarwa Primary School, Nasarawa LGA, Kano; officers of the Nigerian Army 241 Recce Model Battalion, Nguru, Yobe; members of Engine Grinders Association, Gboko, Benue; while the Ekiti state command of NDLEA paid WADA advocacy visit to the Nigerian Correctional Service in Ado Ekiti, just as the Anambra state command of the Agency paid a similar WADA advocacy visit to the Speaker of the State House of Assembly.
“While commending the officers and men of the Lagos, Nasarawa, Gombe, Kano, and Edo Commands for the arrests, seizures and their dexterity, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd) enjoined them and their colleagues across the country to continue with the ongoing balanced approach to the drug control efforts of the Agency”, Babafemi stated.
Breaking: EFCC Storms Obasanjo Hotel during Pool party, Arrests Internet Fraudster
Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission have reportedly stormed the Green Legacy Hotel, located within the premises of the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library, Abeokuta, Ogun State, and arrested some youths suspected to be internet fraudsters.
EFCC operatives carried out the raid in the early hours of Sunday during a pool party at the premises of the library.
This came barely five days after operatives of the Ibadan Zonal Directorate of the commission arrested a suspected internet fraudster with two locally-made pistols in a raid at K-Hotel in Itori, Ewekoro area of the state.
The suspect, according to the anti-graft agency, was among the 55 others arrested during the raid carried out on Wednesday.
Marwa calls for collective action against drug abuse, cultism, banditry
By Ebinum Samuel
Rallies parents, traditional, religious and community leaders to support government efforts
Chairman/Chief Executive of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Brig Gen Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd) has called for collective action involving families, religious and community leaders to stem the tide of substance abuse, cultism and banditry among Nigerian youths.
Marwa who made the call while delivering the keynote address at a seminar organized by the Ijebu Ode Council of Olorituns in Ijebu Ode, Ogun state on Saturday 9th August 2025 themed “Dangers of drug abuse, cultism and banditry among youths”, noted that collective responsibility must be embraced by all stakeholders to curb the menace of the inter-linked social vices of illicit drugs, cultism and banditry.
He said the triple threat of cult-related violence, rampant abuse of drugs and illicit substances, and the challenge of banditry across various regions, is a reality that must be dealt with decisively.
“While these issues may appear distinct, they are intricately connected, feeding one another in a cycle of destruction that must be broken if our society is to thrive. Cultism, once largely confined to tertiary institutions, has insidiously spread into secondary schools and neighbourhoods. What began as secret gatherings has transformed into violent confraternities, often manipulated by political or criminal interests. These groups lure young people, often under the guise of brotherhood, protection or empowerment, into a world of fear, violence and premature death. Tragically, the hands of many of our youth have been stained with the blood of their peers, all for false promises of belonging and power.”
According to the NDLEA boss, “It is projected that the number of people using drugs will increase by 40% in Africa. When they say Africa, I want us to think of Nigeria, because Nigeria has one of the highest drug use prevalences in the world.”
He however said that despite the projection by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), all hope is not lost. “As a nation and as communities, we still possess the power to reverse this trend”, he assured.
“The first step is collective responsibility. Parents, religious institutions, traditional rulers, educational authorities and community leaders must rise with one voice against these vices. The family unit must be strengthened as the first point of moral instruction, while schools should be safe spaces that promote discipline, mentorship and awareness.
“We must also invest in youth development by creating opportunities for education, entrepreneurship, skills acquisition and sports. Idle hands, as we know, are the devil’s workshop. When our young people find purpose and meaning, they are less likely to seek false validation from cults or drugs”, Marwa stated.
Dwelling on how the NDLEA is responding to the challenge, Marwa said “we have intensified our war against drug trafficking and abuse.Nationwide raids have led to significant seizures and arrests, which we share weekly on our official channels.
“In the past 54 months, we have arrested 67, 345 traffickers, including 95 barons, and 12, 415 of them are presently serving various jail terms. The barons we have arrested are not anonymous people in society. They include big business people and socialites—some of them have chieftaincy titles—and also government officials, including those tasked with maintaining law and order. That tells how deeply the rot had eaten into the fabric of our society.
“Within the period, we have seized more than 11.2 million kilograms of assorted illicit drugs and destroyed 1,572 hectares of cannabis farms mostly in Southwest States where some people are cultivating cannabis on a large scale, utilising land that should have been used for other cash crops for illicit crops.
“We are also scaling up our Drug Demand Reduction programmes, including school outreaches, community sensitisation and rehabilitation initiatives. We have within the same period conducted 11,584 sensitisatioin lectures in schools, work places, woship centres, motor parks, palaces of traditional rulers and communities, while 27, 187 drug users have been treated and rehabilitated through our 30 rehab facilities across the country in addition to thousands of others who have benefitted from the psychosocial support services provided on our tollfree helpline: 080010203040.”
While challenging other stakeholders, he said “we cannot do it alone. We need communities like Ijebu-Ode to partner with us, to speak up, to report suspicious activities and to support our advocacy drives.
“Moreover, security architecture must be enhanced at the grassroots level. Local vigilante groups, properly trained and coordinated, can serve as the eyes and ears of the community, working closely with law enforcement agencies to disrupt cult gatherings and prevent violent incidents.
“We must rekindle the moral and spiritual fabric of our society. We must remind our youth that there is dignity in labour, pride in learning and honour in integrity. The path to greatness is not paved with shortcuts of violence and drugs, but with hard work, vision and purpose.”
He commended the Council of Oloritun for organizing the seminar and the choice of the theme. “Your commitment to community and youth development is clear, and I encourage other councils across Nigeria to emulate this initiative. Let us rise as one people to rescue our children, secure our streets and restore the values that once defined our land”, he added.
In his welcome address, Chairman of the Council, Chief Adebisi Adeola Alausa commended Marwa for accepting the Council’s invitation. “Your presence today reflects our shared commitment to safeguarding the future of our community and our nation. We are gathered here not merely as individuals, but as a united front, as traditional leaders, government officials, parents, educators, and most importantly, our youths, to confront challenges that threaten the very fabric of our society. The issues we address today, the drug abuse, cultism, and banditry, are not distant problems”
Chairman of the occasion, Senator Lekan Mustapha describe different approaches Marwa as a visionary leader based on his past records of performance as military governor of Borno and Lagos as well as his transformation of NDLEA into reckoning both locally and internationally. “That you honoured our invitation shows your passion for the job, the safety and protection of our youths from drug and other vices”, he added.
Marwa seized the opportunity of his presence in Ijebu Ode to pay the family of the late Awujale of Ijebu land, Oba Sikiru Adetona, a condolence visit
According to the NDLEA boss, “It is projected that the number of people using drugs will increase by 40% in Africa. When they say Africa, I want us to think of Nigeria, because Nigeria has one of the highest drug use prevalences in the world.”
He however said that despite the projection by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), all hope is not lost. “As a nation and as communities, we still possess the power to reverse this trend”, he assured.
“The first step is collective responsibility. Parents, religious institutions, traditional rulers, educational authorities and community leaders must rise with one voice against these vices. The family unit must be strengthened as the first point of moral instruction, while schools should be safe spaces that promote discipline, mentorship and awareness.
“We must also invest in youth development by creating opportunities for education, entrepreneurship, skills acquisition and sports. Idle hands, as we know, are the devil’s workshop. When our young people find purpose and meaning, they are less likely to seek false validation from cults or drugs”, Marwa stated.
Dwelling on how the NDLEA is responding to the challenge, Marwa said “we have intensified our war against drug trafficking and abuse.Nationwide raids have led to significant seizures and arrests, which we share weekly on our official channels.
“In the past 54 months, we have arrested 67, 345 traffickers, including 95 barons, and 12, 415 of them are presently serving various jail terms. The barons we have arrested are not anonymous people in society. They include big business people and socialites—some of them have chieftaincy titles—and also government officials, including those tasked with maintaining law and order. That tells how deeply the rot had eaten into the fabric of our society.
“Within the period, we have seized more than 11.2 million kilograms of assorted illicit drugs and destroyed 1,572 hectares of cannabis farms mostly in Southwest States where some people are cultivating cannabis on a large scale, utilising land that should have been used for other cash crops for illicit crops.
“We are also scaling up our Drug Demand Reduction programmes, including school outreaches, community sensitisation and rehabilitation initiatives. We have within the same period conducted 11,584 sensitisatioin lectures in schools, work places, woship centres, motor parks, palaces of traditional rulers and communities, while 27, 187 drug users have been treated and rehabilitated through our 30 rehab facilities across the country in addition to thousands of others who have benefitted from the psychosocial support services provided on our tollfree helpline: 080010203040.”
While challenging other stakeholders, he said “we cannot do it alone. We need communities like Ijebu-Ode to partner with us, to speak up, to report suspicious activities and to support our advocacy drives.
“Moreover, security architecture must be enhanced at the grassroots level. Local vigilante groups, properly trained and coordinated, can serve as the eyes and ears of the community, working closely with law enforcement agencies to disrupt cult gatherings and prevent violent incidents.
“We must rekindle the moral and spiritual fabric of our society. We must remind our youth that there is dignity in labour, pride in learning and honour in integrity. The path to greatness is not paved with shortcuts of violence and drugs, but with hard work, vision and purpose.”
He commended the Council of Oloritun for organizing the seminar and the choice of the theme. “Your commitment to community and youth development is clear, and I encourage other councils across Nigeria to emulate this initiative. Let us rise as one people to rescue our children, secure our streets and restore the values that once defined our land”, he added.
In his welcome address, Chairman of the Council, Chief Adebisi Adeola Alausa commended Marwa for accepting the Council’s invitation. “Your presence today reflects our shared commitment to safeguarding the future of our community and our nation. We are gathered here not merely as individuals, but as a united front, as traditional leaders, government officials, parents, educators, and most importantly, our youths, to confront challenges that threaten the very fabric of our society. The issues we address today, the drug abuse, cultism, and banditry, are not distant problems”
Chairman of the occasion, Senator Lekan Mustapha describe different approaches Marwa as a visionary leader based on his past records of performance as military governor of Borno and Lagos as well as his transformation of NDLEA into reckoning both locally and internationally. “That you honoured our invitation shows your passion for the job, the safety and protection of our youths from drug and other vices”, he added.
Marwa seized the opportunity of his presence in Ijebu Ode to pay the family of the late Awujale of Ijebu land, Oba Sikiru Adetona, a condolence visit JUST IN: Lagos Police Arraign Notorious Suspected Assassin, ‘Olori Eso,’ on Murder, Arms Charges
A suspected hired assassin, Wasiu Akinwande, popularly known as Olori Eso, has been arraigned at the Ogba Magistrate Court in Lagos on 11 counts ranging from murder, unlawful possession of firearms, and felony.
According to a statement released by Lagos State Police Command spokesperson, SP Benjamin Hundeyin, the 44-year-old suspect—described as one of the most wanted and dangerous hired killers in the state—was arrested in a covert operation tagged “Silence, Speed, and Surprise” by the Command’s Tactical Squad. The operation was carried out at Akinwande’s hideout in Agbado, Ogun State, after weeks of failed attempts to apprehend him.
The police revealed that Akinwande had long terrorized Mushin and nearby communities, evading capture until the recent breakthrough. A search of his residence led to the recovery of a large cache of weapons and incriminating items, which he reportedly admitted were used during his operations with a criminal gang.
Hundeyin confirmed, “Wasiu Akinwande, alias Olori Eso, is currently being arraigned at the Ogba Magistrate Court on an eleven-count charge.”
Details of the Charges
Among the charges filed against Akinwande are:
The alleged murder of Bankole Yusuf and Ramadan Yusuf during a violent clash in the Mushin area on July 31, 2024.
The 2010 killing of a 10-year-old girl, Aminat Lateef, in Fadeyi, while she was running an errand.
The unlawful possession of high-powered weapons including:
One K2 assault rifle
Two AK-47 rifles
Two locally made pistols
70 rounds of 5.56mm ammunition
27 rounds of 9mm ammunition
57 live cartridges
Three walkie-talkies
One poisonous dagger
Akinwande is also accused of the attempted murder of a 58-year-old woman, Awawu Ajalara, in February 2011, when he allegedly shot both her legs with an AK-47 rifle, leaving her permanently disabled.
The charges cite violations of several sections of the Lagos State Criminal Laws (2015) and the Firearms Act of the Federation (2004).
The suspect, alongside unnamed accomplices still at large, is being prosecuted under laws that carry serious penalties, including potential life imprisonment or capital punishment, depending on the court’s ruling.
Couple sentenced to 22 years imprisonment for drug trafficking in Lagos
By Ebinum Samuel
Indian lady, Angolan bizman, 1 other bag 21 years jail in Kano, Enugu as NDLEA secures final forfeiture of multi-billion naira Lagos hotel, cars used for illicit drug distribution
A businessman Ajah Johnson Uchenna and his wife Rosemary Uchenna were on Monday 4th August 2025 sentenced to a total of 22 and a half years imprisonment by Justice Deinde Dipeolu of the Federal High Court 8 in Lagos for dealing in illicit drugs.
The couple was first arrested on Friday 13th June by operatives of the Department of State Security (DSS) in Ojo area of the state and transferred to NDLEA along with 277.5kg skunk, a strain of cannabis. While they were still being investigated in custody, credible intelligence revealed that the family business was going on in their house. This led to a raid of their home and a packing store where 231kg of same substance was recovered by NDLEA operatives on Tuesday 1st July.
They were subsequently arraigned in charge number FHC/L/632C/2025 at the Federal High Court Lagos on a four-count charge bordering on conspiracy, dealing and storage of 414.2 kilograms of cannabis sativa.
Delivering his judgement on the case on Monday 4th August, Justice Dipeolu convicted Mrs.
Rosemary Uchenna on counts 1, 2, and 3 and sentenced her to 17 years in prison without an option of fine, while her husband Johnson Ajah Uchenna was convicted and sentenced to five years imprisonment without option of fine on count 1 and six months in jail on count 4 with an option of N1 million fine.
In addition to the jail terms, the trial judge also ordered the sum of Three Million, Four Hundred and Seven Thousand Naira (₦3, 407,000.00) only recovered from the couple as proceeds of crime be forfeited to the Federal Government.
Similarly, a Federal High Court in Kano presided by Justice Simon Amobeda has convicted and sentenced a 42-year-old Indian lady, Neetu Neetu to five years imprisonment for importing 72 parcels of heroin factory sealed in wafer wraps and packaged as chocolates, weighing 11 kilograms into Nigeria through the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA) Kano.
The class A drug consignment was recovered from Neetu’s luggage after a thorough search, following processed credible intelligence, during an inward clearance of Qatar Airways flight QR1431 from Bangkok, Thailand via Vietnam and Doha at the arrival hall of the Kano airport on Friday 14th March 2025. She was subsequently arraigned in charge number FHC/KN/CR/65/2025 before Justice Amobeda who eventually sentenced her to 10 years on two counts with an option of N2million fine.
In like manner, a 42-year-old Angolan businessman Mbala Dajou Abuba was convicted and sentenced to five years in prison by Justice Mohammed Yunusa of a Federal High Court in Kano following his arrest and arraignment by NDLEA for ingesting 120 pellets of cocaine weighing 1.829 kilograms. Abuba who is from the Zaire province in Angola was arrested on Tuesday 25th February 2025 at the screening point of the Kano airport while trying to board Egypt Air flight MS 880 to Istanbul, Turkey via Cairo.
Equally, a Federal High Court in Enugu has convicted another drug trafficker Eze Christian Ikenna on two counts of unlawful trafficking and possession of 11.20 kilograms of cocaine, brought against him by the NDLEA in charge number FHC/EN/CS/9/2023. He was arrested on January 20, 2023 by NDLEA operatives at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, upon arrival from Brazil via Addis Ababa, Ethiopia with 11.20 kilograms of cocaine concealed in herbal tea sachets. He was subsequently arraigned before Justice M. G. Umar of the Federal High Court, Enugu, who eventually sentenced him to three years imprisonment on each count, totalling six years, while the sentence will run concurrently, effective from May 20, 2023.
In yet another high impact breakthrough in its ongoing war against illicit drug trafficking across Nigeria, the NDLEA has secured the final forfeiture of a multi-billion Naira 80-room Hotel and Lounge in Victoria Island Lagos linked to an illicit drug trafficking cartel along with other assets.
The 80-room hotel in Victoria Island Lagos used as cover for distributing illicit substances was raided between Friday 25th and Saturday 26th April 2025 by NDLEA operatives who after hours of combing the rooms recovered 589 bags of Canadian Loud, a strong strain of cannabis with a total weight of 417.3 kilograms worth One Billion Forty-Two Million Five Hundred Thousand Naira (₦1,042,500,000) only in street value.
Forfeited along with the landed property situated at No. 16 Waziri Ibrahim Street off Elsie Femi Pearse Road, Victoria Island, Lagos, include: Toyota Sienna Vehicle marked KJA 79 HJ;
Volkswagen Delivery Van numbered AAA 525 JE; KIA Ceranto Car with plate number BDG 860 GQ; Black Colour Land Cruiser Prado with plate number AKD 472 DZ; Red Colour Grand Caravan Dodge with plate number APP 847 YF; White Colour Mazda Bus marked KTU 241 AAA; Mercedes Benz Truck with registration number ASB 500 XY; Gold Colour Toyota Corolla Car with registration number EKY 295 JT; Ash Colour Sienna Mini Bus; 84 Television Sets; 70 Air New Conditioners; and 13 New Fridges.
The final forfeiture orders were issued on Friday 18th July 2025 by Justice Ibrahim Ahmad Kala following the motion number FHC/L/MISC/447/2025 filed by NDLEA.
Reacting to the conviction and forfeiture court judgements, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig Gen Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd) commended the various commands of the Agency, their officers and men that handled the various cases as well as the judiciary for delivering prompt judgements to strengthen the deterrent effect of NDLEA efforts. “Nothing serves the cause of justice more than when the criminal elements are given long jail terms and made to forfeit all they have acquired through the proceeds of their illicit drug trade, and we’re happy with this kind of judicial pronouncements, which will not only encourage our men to do more but will have long lasting impact on our drug control efforts”, Marwa stated.
26-year-old Nigerian Man Stabbed to Death in UK
A 26-year-old Nigerian man has been s#bbed to d3ath in the United Kingdom.
Ayowale Aledejana was k!lled in a home in south-east London, according to the Met Police.
It was gathered that officers were called to Monson Road, New Cross, at around 7.26pm on Saturday, August 2, 2025 after a man was found with st#b wounds.
Officers attended alongside paramedics and London Air Ambulance medics but Mr Aledjana, from South Norwood, Croydon, d!ed at the scene.
His family are being supported by specially trained officers.
The incident happened across the road from what was the Duke of Albany pub, which featured in the 2004 film Shaun Of The D3ad.
A forensics tent has been set up on the pavement, and flowers have been left outside the terraced house.
A 23-year-old man and a 23-year-old woman have been arrested on suspicion of m8rder and remain in custody.
Detective Chief Inspector Lucie Card, who is leading the investigation, said: “Our thoughts are with Ayowale’s family and friends at this difficult time.
“I understand this incident will be concerning and we are carrying out a fast-paced and thorough investigation to establish the circumstances.
“I would encourage anyone who has not yet spoken to us to do so.
“Anyone with information is asked to call police on 101 quoting reference 6271/02AUG
Saudi Arabia executes 17 people in 3 days
Saudi Arabia has executed 17 individuals in just three days, according to reports from state media on Monday the country’s fastest rate of capital punishment since March 2022, when 81 people were executed in a single day.
The Saudi Press Agency confirmed that two Saudi nationals were executed on Monday for what were described as “terrorist crimes.” This came on the heels of 15 other executions over the weekend, mostly involving foreign nationals convicted of drug-related offenses.
Thirteen of them were convicted of smuggling hashish, and one was executed for trafficking cocaine.
This brings the total number of executions in the kingdom so far this year to 239.
The figure includes 161 executions for drug offences and 136 foreign nationals, based on an AFP tally of official data.
If the current trend continues, Saudi Arabia could surpass its 2023 record of 338 executions, the highest since public tracking began in the early 1990s.
Human rights organisations have expressed deep concern.
Jeed Basyouni of Reprieve noted that most of the recent executions involved foreign nationals and related to hashish smuggling.
She described the surge as alarming, especially at a time when many countries are moving toward decriminalising cannabis-related offences.
Analysts link the spike in executions to Saudi Arabia’s intensified “war on drugs,” which began in 2023. Many of those now being executed were arrested shortly after the campaign launched and have since completed legal processes.
After a three-year moratorium on executions for drug-related crimes, Saudi Arabia resumed the practice in late 2022.
Authorities insist the death penalty is carried out only after all appeals are exhausted and argue it serves as a deterrent to crime and helps maintain national security.
However, activists argue that the growing use of capital punishment contradicts the kingdom’s efforts to project a modern and progressive image under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s Vision 2030 reform programme.