The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a wanted drug trafficker, Frank Chijioke Ibemesi, known as Chisco Bee, after weeks of intelligence-led tracking. The suspect, who presents himself as a businessman and hotel operator, was taken into custody over the weekend following a coordinated operation in Lagos.
NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, confirmed in a statement on Sunday that the 42-year-old, who serves as the MD/CEO of Franc CJ Ibemesi Nigeria Ltd, was apprehended at his Daisy Garden Hotel on Ago Palace Way, Isolo, in the early hours of Saturday by operatives of the Special Operations Unit.
Following his arrest, officers searched his warehouse located on Pius Ezeobi Street, also in Isolo, where they recovered 42 jumbo bags and four cartons of “Loud,” a potent strain of cannabis, weighing a total of 1,762.8kg. Cash in foreign currencies was also seized from him, including $11,600, £2,000, €2,200 and 50 Canadian dollars.
Babafemi disclosed that the operation was one of several major raids carried out across the country in recent days. In Osun State, NDLEA operatives intercepted a massive 11,135kg consignment of processed skunk hidden in the Orita-Apeje, Araromi-Okeodo forest reserve in Ife South LGA. The drugs were packed and ready for distribution before officers closed in after prolonged surveillance. Two trucks used for the operation were seized, and seven suspects arrested.
In Edo State, multiple raids led to the recovery of 1,902.1kg of cannabis. These included 184.1kg found at a bush path in Igbanke, 672kg evacuated from the Utese forest, and 494kg discovered in a Mercedes-Benz on the Benin-Akure Road. Two suspects, Felix Edah and Lucky Abagha, were arrested during the operations.
Four more suspects were arrested along the Ijebu-Ode Expressway in Ogun State with 68kg of skunk and 3.15kg of methamphetamine. In Taraba State, 172kg of cannabis was seized from a suspect in Ardo Kola LGA, while another 84kg was recovered in Takum.
NDLEA officers in Adamawa State also seized 396,000 tramadol capsules from a suspect at the Yola airport. A separate raid in Nasarawa State led to the evacuation of 785kg of cannabis from the warehouse of a fleeing dealer in Maraba Karu.
In Lagos, two suspects were caught with 130 pouches of Canadian Loud weighing 65.15kg in Surulere. Another suspect was arrested in Oyingbo with 282 blocks of Ghana Loud weighing 141kg.
The Kwara State Command also intercepted a truck carrying 197 blocks of cannabis totaling 78.565kg, along with 155 cartons of rubber solutions, on the Ilorin–Jebba expressway. A commercial bus was also stopped in a separate operation, yielding 20 blocks of cannabis hidden in a 50-litre jerrycan.
Across the country, NDLEA formations continued their “War Against Drug Abuse” (WADA) outreach programmes in schools and communities, including sensitisation sessions in Zamfara, Ebonyi, Jigawa, Enugu, Lagos and Ogun states.
NDLEA Chairman, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd), praised the efforts of operatives involved in the recent seizures. He urged officers nationwide to maintain the agency’s balanced and coordinated strategy in the fight against drug trafficking and abuse.
