Uwaezuoke Ikenna Christian and Agbo Chidike Prince, two infamous drug kingpins, have been sentenced to life imprisonment by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), ending their years-long illegal activity of exporting cocaine across continents.

The Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja, during the inward clearance of an Ethiopian Airlines flight from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, is where Uwaezuoke’s journey to a life sentence in prison started, according to NDLEA. It was discovered that he had consumed 100 large wraps of cocaine, weighing 2.243 kilograms.

The anti-drug agency claimed that after entering a not guilty plea, he was arraigned before the Federal High Court, Abuja Division, under charge number FHC/ABJ/CR/438/2022, and was given bail under specific terms.

According to NDLEA, he then fled, which prompted the court to cancel his release and issue an arrest warrant for him.

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In a statement released on Sunday, Femi Babafemi, the Director of Media and Advocacy for the NDLEA, stated that Uwaezuoke was once again apprehended by NDLEA agents on August 1, 2023, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Ikeja, Lagos, while he was attempting to export 1.822 kilograms of cocaine to India through ingestion under the name Ilonzeh Kingsley Onyebuchi and using a different passport.

According to Babafemi, Uwaezuoke was arraigned once more before Justice Nicholas Oweibo of the Federal High Court, Lagos Division, under charge number FHC/L/554C/2023. He entered a guilty plea to both counts of the charges, was found guilty, and was given a sentence of seven years in prison or a fine of ₦1,500,000.00 on October 18, 2023.

After paying the fee, he was moved to Abuja to deal with the importation case that was still ongoing against him. On March 20, 2024, he was re-arrested before Justice Joyce Obehi Abdulmalik at the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court, under charge number FHC/ABJ/CR/438/2022, and he entered a guilty plea once more.

The statement claims that despite his plea, he was found guilty and given a life sentence, with the court citing his repeated offenses, his lack of remorse, and the gravity of drug-related offenses.

According to Babafemi, on October 21, 2023, during the outbound clearance of an Ethiopian Airlines flight to Hong Kong, 42-year-old Agbo Chidike Prince was detained at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja for consuming 49 wraps of cocaine totaling 998.73 grams.

When the defendant entered a guilty plea to the single count charge at his arraignment before Justice Joyce Obehi Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court, Abuja Division, the prosecution was prompted to produce evidence and go over the case’s circumstances.

In spite of the defendant’s attorney’s plea of allocutus, the court found the defendant guilty and sentenced him to life in prison on April 15, 2024, emphasizing the seriousness of drug-related offenses due to the case’s complexity and the drug’s commercial quantity.
On Friday, April 26, NDLEA agents detained Yahaya Danjuma Oturah, a passenger on an Ethiopian Airlines aircraft, as she attempted to export 4,000 225 mg tramadol pills to Malpensa, Italy, at the Gate C departure hall at the Lagos airport.

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Concealed within women’s clothing, the psychoactive material was discovered in the suspect’s rucksack, along with granulated melon and another bag filled with food. Oturah, a regular traveler, said in his statement that he was paid 700 euros to courier the drug once the shipment arrived safely in Italy.

On Wednesday, April 24, NDLEA agents in Bayelsa detained 28-year-old Jennifer Iliya in the Amarata neighborhood of Yenagoa for manufacturing and dispersing cakes laced with illegal substances, namely cannabis sativa. A sizable portion of the 1.5 kg of poisoned cakes was found on her at the time of her arrest.

On Sunday, March 10, NDLEA agents in Yenagoa detained Josephine Odunu, a 20-year-old hair stylist, and Edesemi Ikporo, a 30-year-old dispatch rider, for a similar offense.

In Sabon Tasha, Kaduna, two suspects, Joseph Dadik, 47, and Bensha Yari, 32, were taken into custody with 24,180 ampoules of pentazocine injection, which weighed 135.5 kg. On Friday, April 26, an operation at Adamu Umar’s house in the Shuware area of Mubi, Adamawa State, resulted in the discovery of 20,700 kg of cannabis.

NDLEA agents conducted a raid in Mushin, Lagos State, on Thursday, April 25, and they retrieved a total of 310.7 kg of cannabis. While 300 kg of the same material was found at Olatunji Street in Mushin, 10.7 kg was found at Anifowose in Mushin, where it was found on two suspects, Tijani Wasiu and Suleiman Aisha.

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While Stanley Chukwudi, 43, was apprehended on Thursday, April 25, in the Sabon Gari area of Kano State with 5,900 ampoules of pentazocine injection, on Wednesday, April 24, NDLEA officers apprehended Fredrick Odion, 53, and Gladys Odion, 52, in Iruekpen, Esan West LGA, Edo State, with 50 kg of cannabis.

In response to the development, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd), Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, praised the men and officers of the agency’s Directorate of Prosecution and Legal Services for their persistent pursuit of the cases involving Uwazuoke and Agbo.

He claimed that the agency’s success rate in prosecuting cases has demonstrated that there is no way out for anybody engaged in the illegal drug trade.

Marwa also commended their counterparts in every command throughout the nation, including those of MMIA, Lagos, Kaduna, Kano, Edo, Adamawa, and Bayelsa, for stepping up their efforts to reduce drug supply and demand.