By Ajibola Olaide, JKNewsMedia Reporter
A FUGITIVE drug kingpin wanted over a 49.70kg heroin shipment intercepted at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, has been arrested and repatriated by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) after more than two years on the run.
JKNewsMedia.com reports that Festus Ibewuike, also known as Chidibest Ibewuike, fled to Mozambique after the seizure, where he operated a hotel business as a front. He was among three suspects declared wanted and charged in absentia following the NDLEA’s operation in February 2024.
Operatives of the agency’s MMIA Strategic Command had intercepted the heroin during a coordinated 12-day operation at the airport’s cargo terminal. The 49.70kg consignment, concealed inside cartons of metal-cutting machines, was described as the single largest heroin shipment ever recorded at the airport.
The operation also exposed other members of the drug syndicate, leading to the arrest of key suspects, including Ibewuike’s wife, Confidence Ndidiamaka Ibewuike.
JKNewsMedia.com reports that the agency said she routinely received drug-laden parcels bearing the code “ND” on behalf of her husband.
Beyond the arrests, NDLEA froze 107 bank accounts and secured the forfeiture of properties linked to the cartel.
Also, the agency’s chairman commended the multinational cooperation that led to Ibewuike’s arrest and repatriation, particularly the efforts of the Nigerian and Beninese INTERPOL National Central Bureaus in facilitating the transfer of custody.
NDLEA Chairman, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), vowed that the agency would continue pursuing suspects who remain at large until they are brought to book.
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