NDLEA bursts Shrine Chief in Lagos, recovers 2.7 tons of Skunk

Agents from the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have apprehended Bariu Aliu, the traditional chief priest of the Igunuko Shrine.

He was arrested in the Alpha Beach area of Ajah, Lekki, after a three-month search.

On October 25, 2024, Bariu, nicknamed “Malo,” was arrested after authorities discovered 2,760 kilograms of marijuana at his religious shrine.

A statement released on Sunday by the agency’s spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, revealed that while two of Bariu’s accomplices had been arrested, charged, and convicted last year, the chief priest was identified as the leader of the drug syndicate operating from the shrine.

Babafemi stated, “In Lagos, the traditional chief priest of the Igunuko shrine at Alpha Beach, Ajah Lekki, where 2,760 kg of skunk was recovered on October 25, 2024, Bariu Aliu (alias Malo), has been arrested by NDLEA operatives after a three-month manhunt.

“Though two of his accomplices were arrested at the shrine last year and subsequently charged and convicted in court, Bariu was identified as the syndicate leader.”

He also disclosed that operatives intercepted a 40-foot trailer loaded with 2,217.6 kilograms of skunk, a strain of cannabis, during an intelligence-led operation in the Kagini area of Kubwa, Abuja.

Babafemi said, “A 40-foot trailer loaded with skunk, weighing 2,217.6 kilograms, was intercepted by NDLEA operatives while being distributed into six vehicles at an abandoned fuel station in Kagini, Kubwa, Abuja, for onward distribution to some northern states.

“The intelligence-led operation, which took place at 1:20 a.m. on Saturday, January 11, 2025, led to the seizure of the large illicit consignment, the trailer, six vehicles—comprising a Toyota Van, Toyota Camry, Toyota Sienna, a JAC 4-wheel-drive Hilux, a Toyota Corolla, and a Vento Passat—and the arrest of a suspect, 42-year-old Isaac Monday Desmond.

“The consignment was loaded onto the trailer at Uzebba in the Owan Local Council Area of Edo State.”

During a separate operation in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), agents of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) apprehended two suspects:

Anthony Nnamdi, aged 42, and Abba Ali, aged 27.

The arrests took place in Nyanya, where a total of 1.398 kilograms of cocaine was seized along with a precursor material used in the production of crack cocaine.

Babafemi added that 20 wraps of cocaine, weighing 330 grams, were intercepted from a cargo shipment bound for Australia at a logistics firm in Lagos. The cocaine was concealed in face cream containers.

Additionally, he revealed that 338,200 bottles of codeine-based syrup, valued at over ₦1.19 billion, were seized from two containers flagged by the agency.

The illicit consignments were discovered during joint examinations by NDLEA operatives, Customs, and other security agencies on January 9 and 10, 2025, at the Port Harcourt Ports Complex in Onne, Rivers State.

During a raid, also, on Gadar Tamburawa on Zaria Road in Kano on January 9, officers from the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) apprehended 23-year-old Habibu Ya’u.

The arrest led to the seizure of 45 blocks of cannabis with a combined weight of 24.2 kilograms and 40,800 opioid pills, including tramadol.