Popular Lagos businessman arrested over seized drug shipment

A well-known Lagos businessman, Abduwahab Alebiosu was apprehended by National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) operatives on Thursday, July 18, 2024, over alleged connection to a significant drug trafficking case.

Alebiosu was arrested at his Lekki residence after a consignment of 40 parcels of “Loud,” a potent strain of cannabis, was intercepted.

The drugs, weighing 20.30 kilograms, were concealed within packs of chessboards, scrabble, checkers, and poker sets and had arrived from Canada via British Airways at the Lagos airport.

According to a statement from Femi Babafemi, NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, further searches at Alebiosu’s residence and business premises yielded additional drug-related paraphernalia, including a weighing scale, a cannabis potency test kit, and four vaping machines.

The NDLEA also thwarted other drug smuggling attempts.

On July 19, they intercepted two large bags at the NAHCO export shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) bound for Pakistan. The bags, disguised as food items, contained four parcels of cocaine and 14 parcels of “Loud,” totaling 1.360 kilograms.

Additionally, on the same day, a male passenger, Orobi Adoubi, was apprehended at MMIA Terminal II with alleged eight parcels of “Loud,” concealed in female native dresses, while traveling from Lagos to Dubai.

Other notable seizures include 4.5 kilograms of “Loud” found inside an imported Toyota RAV 4 at Tincan port on July 14 and 67 kilograms of cannabis seized from Amadu Garba in Kebbi State on July 16.

In Abuja, two individuals, Ademola Elusakin and Nuhu Friday Adamu, were arrested with 30 kilograms of cannabis on July 15. In Yobe State, Sale Bukar was caught with 152.5 kilograms of cannabis on July 14, while Aham Regal Chinemeze and Adamu Abdullahi were apprehended in Imo and Kogi States, respectively, with significant amounts of the drug.

In Plateau State, a raid on the storehouse of the fugitive drug dealer Choji Gyang led to the recovery of 312 kilograms of cannabis.