Joachin Mbonu, a drug lord who was on the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency’s wanted list, has been taken into custody.
On July 5, Mbonu was taken into custody by NDLEA agents at his Imo State village estate. The agency’s spokeswoman, Femi Babafemi, said in a statement on Tuesday that Mbonu and his associate had been taken into custody.
According to him, Mbonu is a member of a narcotics organisation that produces methamphetamine.
The statement read: “A major drug cartel behind the production and distribution of deadly psychoactive substance, methamphetamine, popularly called ‘Mkpuru mmiri’ has been taken down by operatives of the NDLEA following the arrest of the leader of the syndicate, 42-year-old Joachin Chikaodi Mbonu and his associate in his mansion tucked in his Umuomi village, Uzogba-Ezenomi autonomous community, Ikeduru Local Government Area of Imo State.
“The cartel, which has operational bases in Imo and Rivers states, became a target of the agency after information revealed that it was responsible for the distribution of large amounts of methamphetamine in the South-East, South-South, and other parts of the country.
During the raid, Babafemi stated that operators discovered 419.99 grammes of methamphetamine, 750 grammes of iodine, and a pump action rifle with four rounds, among other things.
He stated, “On Friday, July 5, 2024, following weeks of surveillance, agents from the agency’s special operations unit tracked and traced the druglord to his village mansion in Imo State, where he was caught with Kenneth Chibuike Ofoegbu, 34, a member of his cartel, with various amounts of methamphetamine, its precursor chemicals, a pump action gun, and cartridges recovered.” 419.99 grammes of methamphetamine, 750 grammes of iodine, 500 grammes of sodium bicarbonate, and two electronic weighing scales together with a pump action gun with four rounds are among the exhibits that were found inside the house.
According to Babafemi, the agents also searched the homes of Mbonu’s colleagues in the states of Rivers and Imo, finding many illegal substances.
He stated, “The operatives moved quickly to another of Mbonu’s hideouts located at 11 Redemption Avenue in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, where they seized additional exhibits: 750 g processed sodium bicarbonate, 170 g plain sodium bicarbonate, and 75 g meth. “Another raid on the residence of one of Mbonu’s colleagues, Odoemenam Pedro Chinedu, who is still at large, in Njaba LGA, Imo State, resulted in the recovery of another pump action gun, 25 cartridges, and other goods. While the kingpin is in detention, two of his houses in Imo State have been designated for probable seizure to the federal government.”
According to Babafemi, Mbonu fled his long-term residence in South Africa and became an expert methamphetamine cook after he was the subject of a drug-related inquiry. He continued by saying that he established covert laboratories in isolated villages to carry out his evil operations after returning to Nigeria.
In Essence
This arrest also emphasizes the transnational nature of drug trafficking, as Mbonu had been operating from South Africa before establishing his network in Nigeria.
The global connections of such criminal organizations necessitate international cooperation and intelligence sharing to effectively combat the drug trade.
Overall, this development is a positive step in Nigeria’s ongoing efforts to address drug-related issues, and it sends a strong message to other drug traffickers about the consequences of their actions.
