News

Qatar-based Drug Kingpins Murphy, Oluchukwu Smashed By NDLEA At Lagos Airport

Published

11 months ago

June 19, 2023

Qatar-based drug kingpins Murphy, Oluchukwu smashed by NDLEA at Lagos Airport

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have smashed two Qatar-based drug kingpins with methamphetamine consignment.

Eyah Celestine Nnamdi, alias Murphy and Ugwuoke Peter Oluchukwu, were arrested by the agency at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, MMIA, Ikeja, Lagos.

Femi Babafemi, NDLEA’s spokesman, in a statement on Sunday said Ugwuoke was the first to be arrested on 9th June during the outward clearance of Qatar Airways passengers at the departure point, Terminal 2 of the Lagos airport.

He said NDLEA officers discovered that the suspect was travelling to Doha with an Ivorian international passport with the name Hien Narcisse.

“A further scrutiny of his black carry-on luggage led to the discovery of a false bottom concealment of two parcels of crystalline substance that tested positive to methamphetamine weighing 1.00kg.

Preliminary investigation revealed that the suspect is a Nigerian who had gone to obtain an Ivorian passport for his travels.

“He confessed that he travelled to Qatar in August 2022 and returned from the Arab nation about two months ago to perfect arrangement for the movement of the drug consignment,” he explained.

According to Babafemi, a further probe led operatives to discover that his Qatar-based senior partner in the trade simply identified as Murphy was lurking around in Eziani, his home town in Nsukka LGA, Enugu State.

He revealed that Ugwuoke, who hails from Igboeze North Local Government Area of the State claimed he holds a National Diploma in Electrical Engineering from the Federal Polytechnic, Oko.

“A prompt deployment of NDLEA operatives on 10th June to Eziani community of Nsukka Local Government Area of Enugu State, led to the arrest of ‘Murphy’ whose true identity was later discovered to be Eyah Celestine Nnamdi, who had lived in Indonesia for some years before relocating to Doha, Qatar,” he disclosed.

Headline

Prince Harry visits sick Nigerian soldiers in Kaduna

Published

3 days ago

May 11, 2024

Alero Danjuma

Prince Harry and his team visited the 44 Nigerian Army Reference Hospital in Kaduna to interact with wounded soldiers who are receiving treatment.

The Duke of Sussex is in Nigeria with his wife to champion the Invictus Games, which Harry founded to aid the rehabilitation of wounded and sick servicemembers and veterans.

Nigeria joined the Invictus Community of Nations in 2022 becoming the first African country to join.

Prince Harry’s visit to Kaduna came 68 years after his late grandmother Queen Elizabeth II visited the state during the time of the late Premier of Northern Region Sir Ahmadu Bello.

News

Senate approves death penalty for drug traffickers

Published

5 days ago

May 9, 2024

Alero Danjuma

Senate on Thursday, May 9, approved the death penalty for those convicted on the charge of drug trafficking in the country.

The punishment prescribed in the extant NDLEA Act is a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

The resolution of the Senate followed its consideration of a report of the Committees on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters and Drugs and Narcotics, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) Act (Amendment) Bill, 2024.

The Chairman of the Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights & Legal Matters presented the report during plenary, Senator Mohammed Monguno (APC-Borno North).

The bill, which passed its third reading, aims to update the list of dangerous drugs, strengthen the operations of the NDLEA, review penalties, and empower the establishment of laboratories.

Section 11 of the current act prescribes that “any person who, without lawful authority; imports, manufactures, produces, processes, plants or grows the drugs popularly known as cocaine, LSD, heroin or any other similar drugs shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to be sentenced to imprisonment for life” was amended to reflect a stiffer penalty of death.

Although the report did not recommend a death penalty for the offence, during consideration, Senator Ali Ndume moved that the life sentence should be upgraded to the death penalty.

During a clause-by-clause consideration of the Bill, Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin, who presided over the session, put the amendment on the death penalty to a voice vote and ruled that the “ayes” had it.

But Senator Adams Oshiomhole objected to the ruling, saying that the “nays” had it.

He argued that matters of life and death should not be treated hurriedly, but Barau said it was too late, as he failed to call for division immediately after his ruling.

The bill was subsequently read for the third time and passed by the Senate.