NDLEA Arrests Traditional Worship Leader For Drug Traffic, Intercepts Australia-Bound Cocaine In Face Cream Bottles In Lagos

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, has detained a traditional head priest of the Igunuko temple at Alpha Beach Ajah Lekki, where 2,760kg of skunk was discovered on October 25, 2024.

According to a statement made by the agency’s spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, Bariu Aliu (alias Malo) was detained by NDLEA agents after a three-month manhunt.

Though two of his associates were caught at the shrine last year and subsequently tried and convicted in court, Babafemi claimed that Bariu was the syndicate’s boss.

In a similar incident, Babafemi stated that officials from the NDLEA’s Directorate of Operations and General Investigation (DOGI) found 20 wraps of cocaine totaling 330 grams from a consignment bound for Australia at a logistics firm in Lagos. He claimed the cocaine packets were hidden around the body of face cream containers in the cargo.

Furthermore, Babafemi stated that the Agency intercepted a total of 338,200 bottles of codeine-based syrup worth more than One Billion One Hundred and Ninety Million One Hundred and Sixty-Eight Thousand Two Hundred Naira (N1,190,168,200.00) in street value in two containers watch-listed as a result of processed intelligence.

He added that the illicit consignments were detected during a joint assessment of the containers by NDLEA agents, Customs, and other security agencies on Thursday, January 9, and Friday, January 10, 2025, at the Port Harcourt Ports Complex in Onne, Rivers state.