Three drug kingpins, along with 16 other offenders, have been convicted and sentenced to a combined total of 302 years in prison for trafficking and dealing in illicit drugs, including cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, cannabis, and opioids.
According to a statement released on Friday by Femi Babafemi, the Spokesperson for the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), these 19 individuals are among 414 drug traffickers and dealers who were convicted by the Federal High Court across Benue, Bauchi, Edo, Lagos, Ogun, Gombe, and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, between July 1 and July 31, 2024. The convictions followed charges brought against them by the NDLEA.
Babafemi highlighted that one of the kingpins, 50-year-old Bolanle Dauda, was apprehended during an intelligence-led raid along the Lagos-Badagry Expressway on May 25, 2024, while attempting to cross the border into Ghana with 42 blocks of cocaine weighing 47.5 kilograms. A subsequent search of his residence led to the discovery of an additional eight blocks of cocaine, bringing the total to 57.5 kilograms. Dauda was sentenced to 21 years in prison by Justice Ambrose Allagoa of the Federal High Court, Lagos, with an option to pay a ₦30 million fine.
Another major player, 34-year-old Ikeh Stanley Ifeanyi, was arrested at the Idumota market in Lagos Island, where 1,100 ampoules of the synthetic opioid fentanyl, weighing 6.480 kilograms, were seized from him. He was sentenced to 14 years in prison by Justice Kehinde Ogundare of the Federal High Court, Lagos, with an option to pay a ₦2 million fine.
The third kingpin, Christian Anyanwu, was caught in November 2022 attempting to smuggle 1.4 kilograms of methamphetamine concealed inside custard tins on a Qatar Airways flight to Brazil. He was sentenced to 16 years in prison by Justice Yellin Bogoro of the Federal High Court, Lagos, with four years of mandatory imprisonment without the option of a fine.
Babafemi also noted that other convicted traffickers received significant prison sentences, including Moses Yakubu, who was sentenced to 25 years in prison, and Oluosun Okikiola, who received a 15-year sentence. These sentences were handed down by various judges across the country, further emphasizing the NDLEA’s commitment to combating drug trafficking in Nigeria.
