Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a 59-year-old wanted drug baron, Ogbonnaya Jeff, bringing an end to his alleged 17-year reign of trafficking illicit drugs worth over N1.4billion between Nigeria and other countries.
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Ogbonnaya, identified as the leader of an international drug syndicate, was apprehended following an Interpol red notice and intelligence from South Korea, which linked him to multiple drug smuggling operations between 2007 and 2024.
Confirming the arrest during a press briefing, NDLEA Chairman, Buba Marwa, revealed that Ogbonnaya’s name first surfaced in 2023 when a consignment of 6,051.06 grams of skunk concealed in dried chillies and jujube was intercepted at Incheon Airport, South Korea. The package, traced to the suspect, was dispatched from Burkina Faso to a Korean recipient, Kim Dong Wook.
Further investigations linked the suspect to two drug mules, Santa Elizabeth Pieterse and Carl Yohan Stephan Brisman, who were arrested between December 2023 and April 2024 for smuggling five kilograms of methamphetamine into South Korea. Both individuals reportedly confessed to being hired by Ogbonnaya.
The NDLEA chairman disclosed that the suspect operated from his residence in Nigeria, laundering drug proceeds through imported electronics and goods, with financial trails traced across Cameroon, Ghana, and other countries.
After months of manhunt, NDLEA operatives apprehended Ogbonnaya on Wednesday, February 12, 2025, at his hideout located at No. 3, Ibukunoluwa Taiwo Close, off LASU Road, Lagos. A search of the premises led to the recovery of multiple Nigerian passports with Korean visas and illicit substances stored in a warehouse at the back of his house.
Marwa commended the Special Operations Unit for the successful arrest, stating the arrest of Ogbonnaya is an affirmation of Agency’s resolve to work with other international partners to ensure no drug baron finds Nigeria a comfort zone to distribute illicit substances or traffic them abroad.
He further reiterated NDLEA’s commitment to dismantling drug trafficking networks and ensuring perpetrators face justice.