By Parrot Newspaper 
Drug Traffickers with Fake Presidency Plate Nabbed
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has successfully apprehended Shuaibu Nuhu Isa (55) a.k.a Don and Zidon Zurga (50) on November 25, 2024, along the Numan-Yola Road, Adamawa State, while transporting 500.8 kg of skunk hidden in:
A Toyota Hilux (Lagos NT 829 AAA)
A Prado SUV with a fake Presidency number plate (01B-266 FG)
They were arraigned before Justice Bala Usman of the Federal High Court, Yola (Charge No: FHC/YL/150/2024) and convicted on February 7, 2025, receiving:
35 years imprisonment each on two counts, totaling 70 years combined
An alternative fine of ₦25 million each
The court also ordered the interim forfeiture of both vehicles used for trafficking.
According to National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), it has successfully secured a total of 95 years in prison for four convicted drug kingpins—Ogbuji Christian Ifeanyi, Iloduba Augustine Chinonye, Shuaibu Nuhu Isa (a.k.a Don), and Zidon Zurga—for trafficking cocaine and skunk worth over ₦4.6 billion.
The Federal High Courts in Lagos and Yola, Adamawa State, handed down the sentences following separate convictions that underline the agency’s intensified crackdown on drug syndicates.
Ogbuji Christian Ifeanyi was arrested at Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos, on September 18, 2024, while arriving from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. NDLEA operatives discovered he was smuggling 817 wraps of cocaine, weighing 19.40 kilograms, with an estimated street value of ₦4.65 billion.
His arrest came just 16 months after a previous conviction for ingesting 93 pellets of cocaine.
Ogbuji was first apprehended on May 10, 2023, at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA), Abuja, while arriving from Uganda via Addis Ababa. He was found to have ingested 1.986 kg of cocaine and was convicted on July 13, 2023, by Justice Mobolaji Olajuwon of the Federal High Court, Abuja (Charge No: FHC/ABJ/CR/192/2023). He was sentenced to two years in prison or a ₦3 million fine, which he paid to secure his release.
However, his return to drug trafficking led to a fresh arrest at Lagos Airport in September 2024, this time with a much larger consignment.
On January 16, 2025, he was arraigned before Justice Yellim Bogoro of the Federal High Court, Lagos (Charge No: FHC/L/845C/2024) and convicted on February 28, 2025, receiving:
Five years imprisonment on Count One, with an option of a ₦7 million fine.
Ten years imprisonment on Count Two, without an option of a fine.
If he fails to pay the fine, Ogbuji will serve a total of 15 years in prison. The court also ordered the forfeiture of all monetary exhibits and items found on him at the time of arrest.
Another Cocaine Trafficker Gets 10 Years
Iloduba Augustine Chinonye (51) was arrested on December 31, 2021, at Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, for ingesting 58 wraps of cocaine.
While in transit through Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, he excreted 48 wraps of the substance. The remaining 10 wraps were expelled while in NDLEA custody after his arrest on January 1, 2022.
After a three-year legal battle, Iloduba was convicted on March 5, 2025, by Justice Folashade Giwa Ogunbanjo of the Federal High Court, Enugu (Charge No: FHC/EN/CR/18/2022) and sentenced to:
Five years imprisonment on each count, totaling 10 years in jail, to run concurrently from the date of conviction.
NDLEA Chairman Applauds Judiciary and Law Enforcement
Reacting to the convictions, NDLEA Chairman/CEO, Brig Gen Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd.), commended the trial courts and the NDLEA investigative teams at MMIA, Akanu Ibiam International Airport, and Adamawa State Commands for their diligence.
“These convictions and the forfeiture of the criminals’ instruments of crime will further strengthen the deterrent effect of our ongoing efforts to completely dismantle drug networks in Nigeria,” Marwa stated.
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