Notorious drug lords sentenced to life imprisonment
…as NDLEA intensifies crackdown on drug trafficking
By Innocent Raphael
Following a relentless war against drug trafficking by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), two prominent drug kingpins, Uwaezuoke Ikenna Christian and Agbo Chidike Prince, have been sentenced to life imprisonment for their involvement in large-scale cocaine operations spanning continents.
A statement released by the agency on Sunday and signed by Femi Babafemi, the Director, Media & Advocacy, NDLEA, detailed a chronicle of its recent operations across the country.
According to the statement, one Uwaezuoke, a 43-year-old businessman, began his journey to a lifetime in jail after being arrested twice for drug-related offenses.
His first arrest was on March 19, 2022, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja, where he was found with 100 wraps of cocaine. However, after being granted bail, he absconded, leading to a revoked bail and an arrest warrant.
The agency further secured his second arrest on August 1, 2023, at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport in Lagos, where he attempted to export cocaine to India under a different identity.
The suspect was then convicted on October 18, 2023, and sentenced to seven years in prison or a fine, which he paid. However, he faced another case in Abuja and was sentenced to life imprisonment on March 20, 2024, due to his lack of remorse and repeated offenses.
According to the NDLEA, Agbo Chidike Prince, aged 42, was apprehended at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja on October 21, 2023, attempting to board a flight to Hong Kong with 49 wraps of cocaine in his system, weighing 998.73 grams.
The suspect was then charged and upon pleading guilty before Justice Joyce Obehi Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court in Abuja, the prosecution presented evidence, leading to a conviction on April 15, 2024.
However, despite the defendant’s counsel’s plea for leniency, citing allocutus, the court, considering the gravity of drug offenses and the commercial quantity involved, sentenced Prince to life imprisonment.
In a recent operation, NDLEA officers intercepted Yahaya Danjuma Oturah attempting to smuggle tramadol to Italy. Also, arrests were made in Bayelsa, Kaduna, Adamawa, Lagos, and Edo states, where individuals were apprehended for various drug-related offenses, including the production and distribution of cannabis-laced products.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd), in his reaction, commended the agency’s officers for their diligence in prosecuting cases and reiterated the agency’s unwavering commitment to combating drug trafficking.
He highlighted the success of recent prosecutions as evidence that drug traffickers will face severe consequences for their actions.
The NDLEA further restated its commitment to an intensified War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) campaign, as well as conducting sensitization lectures across various educational institutions nationwide.
