By Peace Udugba
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intensified its crackdown on international drug cartels by targeting their financiers, assets, bank accounts and other proceeds of illicit trafficking, declaring that drug traffickers now have “no hiding place” in Nigeria or abroad.
NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, disclosed this on Thursday during an interview on Frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese-Ijebu, Ogun State.
Babafemi said the agency had moved beyond the traditional approach of arresting suspects and seizing illicit drugs to dismantling the financial and operational structures sustaining the illegal drug trade.
According to him, the NDLEA is working closely with international law enforcement agencies, including the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency (NCA) and Border Force, as well as their counterparts in Ghana, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Germany, Switzerland and other countries.
He said the growing international collaboration had made it increasingly difficult for traffickers who flee Nigeria to evade justice.
“The world is global now and the NDLEA is not just the NDLEA of Nigeria alone. We now have great networks with our counterparts across the world,” Babafemi said.
He added that the agency had recorded several joint operations with foreign law enforcement authorities, stressing that traffickers could no longer assume they were safe simply because they had left Nigeria.
“That’s why the chairman of the agency, Gen. Marwa, keeps saying that there is no more hiding place for them, whether in Nigeria or outside of Nigeria,” he said.
NDLEA Targets Financiers, Cartel Leaders
Babafemi said the agency was now targeting the financiers, enablers, barons and other key players behind drug trafficking networks.
He said the strategy was aimed at disrupting the supply chains used to move illicit substances into and across Nigeria while simultaneously attacking the financial foundations of the cartels.
“The agency is dealing very deadly blows to the cartels. It’s not just about going after the traffickers or mopping up those things on the streets; we’re going to the roots, blocking the pipelines and then going after the financiers, the enablers, the barons and the cartels,” he said.
According to him, the NDLEA also targets properties and other assets acquired through drug trafficking, including mansions, luxury vehicles and bank accounts.
“What we do is beyond sentencing, arresting them and sending these people to jail. We also go after all that they have acquired through this criminal trade and ensure that they and their families have nothing left to enjoy,” he said.
Babafemi explained that the agency follows due legal processes to secure the forfeiture of such assets to the Federal Government.
NDLEA Arrests Suspected Drug Baron in Switzerland
The NDLEA spokesman cited the arrest of Nigerian suspected drug baron, Amadi Simon, in Switzerland as an example of the agency’s international cooperation.
He said the investigation lasted about two years and involved the NDLEA, the US DEA and law enforcement authorities in Switzerland, France and Greece.
According to him, while Simon was arrested in Switzerland, two alleged female accomplices were arrested in Anambra and Delta states.
Babafemi said the agency had also moved against assets allegedly linked to the network, including three hotels, while the suspects’ bank accounts had been frozen.
“We had around May the arrest of a billionaire drug baron, Amadi Simon, who was a Nigerian and was hibernating in Switzerland. That investigation took about two years for us, while we worked with the US DEA as well as our counterparts in Switzerland, France and Greece,” he said.
Nearly Two Million Tramadol Tablets Seized
Babafemi also disclosed that the NDLEA had dismantled a drug trafficking cartel operating along the Togo-Benin Republic-Nigeria corridor, describing the route as a major channel through which opioids had entered Nigeria.
He said the agency seized almost two million tablets of tramadol in July as part of efforts to shut down the route.
According to him, those arrested in connection with the operation were prosecuted, while the trucks and long trailers allegedly used to transport the drugs were forfeited to the Federal Government.
“Just in July, that pipeline was also shut down with the seizure of almost two million pieces of tramadol, as well as the arrest of the elements involved,” he said.
NDLEA Arrests Over 91,000 Offenders
Babafemi said the NDLEA had recorded significant operational gains since Brigadier General Buba Marwa (retd.) assumed office as chairman of the agency in January 2021.
He disclosed that 91,148 offenders had been arrested, while about 16 million kilogrammes of assorted illicit substances had been seized during the period.
He also said more than 2,075 hectares of cannabis plantations had been destroyed.
“Definitely, we’re winning. We may not have been where we want to be, but then we’re definitely getting to where we hope to be,” Babafemi said.
NDLEA Opens Toll-Free Drug Abuse Helpline
The NDLEA spokesman said the agency was combining drug law enforcement with treatment, rehabilitation and counselling for people struggling with substance abuse.
He disclosed that the agency currently has 31 rehabilitation centres across Nigeria and is working to establish additional facilities.
Babafemi also announced the NDLEA’s toll-free Drug Abuse Call Centre, where people can access counsellors, clinical psychologists, psychotherapists and psychiatric doctors.
He gave the toll-free number as 0800-1020-3040, saying the service operates 24 hours a day.
According to him, callers can receive teletherapy and psychosocial support without visiting a physical rehabilitation centre, while those requiring further treatment would be referred to an appropriate facility.
He said the service is available in English, Pidgin English, Hausa, Yoruba and Igbo.
Babafemi disclosed that more than 53,000 people had so far been treated and rehabilitated through NDLEA rehabilitation centres.
He added that the agency profiles people arrested during operations to determine whether they should be prosecuted or referred for counselling and treatment.
NDLEA Seeks Removal of Fine Option for Drug Offenders
Babafemi also disclosed that the NDLEA was working with the Federal Government to remove the option of a fine for convicted drug offenders.
He said the proposed amendment to the agency’s enabling law was being pursued through the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice and would subsequently be presented to the National Assembly.
“We are trying to resolve that option of the fine in the amendment of the agency’s Act so as to remove that option,” he said.
Babafemi argued that allowing convicted drug offenders to pay fines could weaken deterrence, particularly where wealthy traffickers could easily afford the penalties.
“When somebody is taken to court to face consequences, when the person is prosecuted and convicted, the person should be able to go to prison to serve the sentence rather than being given an option of fine,” he said.
He, however, explained that some people arrested by the agency could later return to their communities because they were referred for treatment, granted bail by courts or given fines after conviction under existing laws.
NDLEA Rejects Calls for Cannabis Legalisation
The agency also rejected calls for the legalisation of cannabis for medicinal, commercial and revenue-generation purposes.
Babafemi said cannabis remained a major public health and security concern in Nigeria, while responding to calls by African Action Congress presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore for the regulation of cannabis cultivation.
He said the NDLEA had engaged the Nigerian Academy of Science on the issue and relied on scientific findings in formulating its position.
According to Babafemi, cannabis remains the most commonly abused illicit substance in Nigeria and has serious implications for public health and security.
He also distinguished between cannabis products with high levels of THC and low-THC cannabis used for industrial or controlled purposes.
“What is being destroyed is different from what brings the economy benefits,” he said.
NDLEA Links Drug Abuse to Security Challenges
Babafemi further linked illicit drug trafficking and abuse to Nigeria’s security challenges, saying the relationship was supported by evidence.
“This is an evidence-based position. We know that there is a strong nexus between the problem of drug abuse and the security challenges the nation is grappling with today,” he said.
He cited the seizure of Captagon at the Lagos airport as an example of emerging trafficking threats.
According to him, the first seizure of Captagon in Nigeria was recorded in 2021, while another consignment was intercepted at the Lagos airport shortly before the interview.
Babafemi alleged that Captagon trafficking could generate funds for criminal networks involved in the purchase of arms and ammunition.
He said the drug could also cause prolonged wakefulness and increase the propensity for violent behaviour.
NDLEA Urges Parents to Monitor Children
The NDLEA spokesman urged parents and community leaders to play a greater role in preventing drug abuse, stressing that the fight must begin at the family level.
He advised parents to pay attention to changes in their children’s behaviour, friendships, eating habits, sleeping patterns and personal belongings.
Babafemi also encouraged parents who suspect drug use to make use of drug-testing kits available through NDLEA commands across the country.
“Don’t say it’s government alone. No, it starts from the home front. Please, parents, pay attention to the changing patterns in the lives of your kids,” he said.
He urged members of the public to provide information about drug-related activities and seek assistance through the NDLEA’s toll-free helpline.
