Three weeks after escaping arrest at his home in Anguwan Makera, Kuta, Shiroro local government area of Niger state, the leading supplier of illicit drugs to bandits terrorising the state, Mohammed Sani, popularly called Gamboli, has been apprehended by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in his hideout.
The 33years old was nabbed following credible intelligence about the illicit drug activities of Gamboli, who was alleged to have been the brain behind the gunmen’s attacks in the state.
It was learnt on Sunday that Gamboli’s arrest came barely one month after NDLEA operatives raided his house at Anguwan Makera, Kuta, where 471.8 kilograms of skunk, a strain of cannabis, was recovered
Though he escaped arrest during the raid and has since been in hiding, the manhunt for him eventually paid off on Thursday 11th December when NDLEA officers acting on processed intelligence traced and arrested him at one of his drug joints in Anguwan Fadama, Kuta.
In a statement made available to newsmen by the Director, Media & Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (retd) disclosed that intelligence reports had indicated that Gamboli is a major supplier of illicit drugs to bandits operating in Shiroro local government area.
Minutes after his arrest, NDLEA officers in Abia State raided a clandestine codeine syrup-manufacturing factory at Amapu Igbengwo village, Umuakpara, in Osisioma Local Government Area of the state. During the operation, operatives recovered a total of 9,015 bottles of codeine syrup weighing 1,152.2kg.
On the same date in Enugu state, the agency arrested Ossai Emeka, 45, along Onitsha – Enugu Ezike road with 7.2kg skunk, while Enoje Agada, 40, was nabbed along Enugu-Ezike -Ette road with 94.6kg of the same psychoactive substance.
A raid carried out by NDLEA operatives at a notorious drug joint known as “Beere the California” at Ido in Oyo state led to the seizure of 3.4kg skunk, 1.6kg Colorado, a synthetic cannabis and 400grams of methamphetamine.
The owner of the drug joint, identified as “Idowu the killer” is currently at large, while a suspect, Ajibade Faruk, was nabbed at the joint. Another operation at Idi Oro, Elekuro, Ibadan on Friday 12th December led to the arrest of Olusanya Abosede, 35, and the seizure of 238.4kg skunk.
While the duo of Bashiru Babalola, 43, and Ugunwale Ranti, 50, were arrested on Wednesday 10th December at Gbaji checkpoint, Seme road Badagry, Lagos with 50,000 pills of tramadol 250mg, NDLEA operatives in Ogun state arrested two suspects: Akinwale Makanjuola and Joseph Owolabi, with 73kg skunk at Iperu, just as another suspect Wasiu Lateef was nabbed with 25kg of the same substance at Oke Agbede, Imeko area of the state on Tuesday 9th December.
In Ondo state, NDLEA officers acting on credible intelligence on Monday 10th December raided a compound in Ogbese, Akure North local government area, where they arrested a 55-year-old woman, Veronica Obi and her 29-year-old son, Bright Obi, and recovered 1,187 kilograms of skunk and its seeds from them.
A suspect Ohiomah Igbafe, 44, was arrested during a raid operation at Uroe community, Owan East local government area of Edo state, where 461kg skunk and its seeds were recovered on Tuesday 9th December.
In Gombe state, a suspect Muhammed Sani popularly called Sha-Mu-Sha, 50, was arrested with 40,000 capsules of tramadol at Tunfure area, Gombe. In contrast, two other suspects, Muhammad Abdullahi (a.k.a Sakalala), 52, and Muhammed Hamza (a.k.a Mamman), 32, were nabbed at Ashaka Jalingo, with 56kg skunk on Monday, 8th December.
No fewer than 907 pills of tramadol, tapentadol, cocodamol, amitriptyline and bromazepam concealed in containers of local black soap, and designer wears, in six different consignments going to the US, Canada and Sweden were intercepted and seized by NDLEA operatives at two major courier companies in Lagos between Tuesday, 9th and Wednesday, 10th December 2025.
At the Apapa seaport in Lagos, NDLEA officers on Saturday 13th December intercepted a consignment of 170,000 bottles of codeine syrup weighing 23,579kg during a joint examination of a container with men of the Customs Service and other security agencies.
