Essential Ndubuisi
Men of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have apprehended an artiste’s manager based in Lekki and his accomplice, an Ikoyi businessman, for their involvement in distributing illicit drugs at upscale night clubs and lounges in Lekki and other areas on Lagos Island.
Their arrests were the result of an intelligence-led operation focused on a shipment of Colorado, a potent synthetic strain of cannabis, originating from Los Angeles, United States.
Oseni Babatunde (aka Papalampa) was the first to be arrested at his residence in Lekki when the consignment arrived on July 23. During a preliminary interview, he confessed to engaging in the illicit trade for three years, catering to patrons of prominent clubs and lounges like Quilox, Silver Fox, DNA, and Hotbox in Lekki and Lagos Island. Babatunde also disclosed that he organized shows for artists within and outside Nigeria.
The NDLEA operatives intercepted 10 parcels of Colorado, weighing 2.50 kilograms, cleverly hidden in large tins of coffee and duvets linked to Babatunde at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja. Further searches at his residence led to the recovery of additional quantities of the same substance, a digital weighing scale, and other paraphernalia.
Additionally, Nnadi Ikenna, an Ikoyi-based businessman and accomplice of Babatunde, was linked to the drug shipment. Though he was away in South Africa when the consignment arrived, he was apprehended upon his return to Nigeria on a Kenya Airline flight at the Lagos airport on July 27. Ikenna admitted ownership of part of the seized consignment during his statement to NDLEA officers.
The NDLEA continues its efforts to combat drug trafficking and distribution in Lagos, aiming to curb the supply and consumption of illicit substances in highbrow nightlife areas.
