Business

NDLEA Secures 974 Drug Convictions in Three Months as 11 Drug Kingpins Receive 254 Years’ Jail Term

Published

4 weeks ago

April 17, 2026

Preport

BY SUNDAY SAMUEL—The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has recorded a major enforcement milestone, securing 974 convictions for drug-related offences across Nigeria within the first quarter of 2026. The convictions, achieved between January and March, reflect an intensified nationwide crackdown on drug trafficking networks and their collaborators.

No fewer than 974 offenders have been convicted and sentenced to various jail terms including 11 drug kingpins who bagged 254 years imprisonment in the first quarter of 2026 as the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) ramped up the arrest, prosecution and forfeiture of the assets of drug traffickers and their collaborators across the country.

Among the 974 drug traffickers convicted between January and March, 899 of them are male and 75 females, while a further breakdown of the conviction figure shows that 265 were secured in January, 316 in February and 393 in March.

Top on the list of the 11 drug kingpins who were successfully prosecuted and convicted within the period include a notorious Italy-based 42-year-old businessman, Adegbite Solomon (a.k.a Obama) who was arraigned on 15-count charge before Justice Musa Kakaki of the Federal High Court Lagos in suit number: FHC/L/851C/2025. Delivering his ruling on the matter on 18th March, Justice Kakaki convicted the repeat offender on all 15 counts and sentenced him to a total of 130 years in prison.

Specifically, Justice Kakaki sentenced Adegbite to 15 years’ imprisonment on count 1; 15 years on count 2; 15 years on count 3; 15 years on count 4; 15 years on count 5; 15 years on count 6; 10 years on count 7; four years on count 8; four years on count 9; four years on count 10; four years on count 11; four years on count 12; and 10 years on count 15. While the prison sentence is to run concurrently, the trial judge also ordered the revocation of the convict’s pharmacy license and the forfeiture of two branches of his pharmacy store as well as the forfeiture of funds in his three bank accounts to the Federal Government, among others.

Another top drug kingpin sentenced to long years in prison in the first quarter of the year is 32-year-old Ridwan Animashaun who was arraigned by NDLEA before Justice Nkenoye Evelyn Maha of the Federal High Court, Ibadan, Oyo state in charge number: FHC/IB/97C/2025. In her judgment delivered on 26th February 2026, Justice Maha convicted and sentenced Animashaun to 25 calendar years for drug trafficking.

The convict was first convicted and sentenced to one year imprisonment for a similar offence on 15th July 2022 by Justice Uche Agomoh of the Federal High Court following his arrest by NDLEA along Lagos/Ibadan expressway on 27th March 2022.

Two other convicts who bagged long years imprisonment are: Rauf Asogba, 28, and Seun Olaniyi, 24, who were convicted and sentenced to 17 years in jail each by Justice Abiodun Jordan Adeyemi of the Federal High Court Abeokuta, Ogun state on 28th January 2026 after NDLEA arrested and charged them to court for trafficking 1,779 kilograms of skunk in suit number: FHC/AB/160C/2025.

Another set of two convicts got 15 years imprisonment each. They are: 54-year-old Jonathan Nuhu (a.k.a Doctor) who was convicted by Justice Mohammed Nasir Yunusa of the Federal High Court, Kano, Kano state on 17th March 2026 following his arraignment by NDLEA in charge: FHC/KN/CR/96/2023, and 40-year-old Idris Yusuf who was sentenced on 31st March 2026 by Justice Fatima Murtala Nyako of the Federal High Court, Damaturu, Yobe in suit number FHC/CR/6/21, in addition to another eight years sentence for a similar case brought against Yusuf by NDLEA in charge number FHC/CR/DM/16/24.

Other convicts who got seven years imprisonment each for drug trafficking offences in parts of the country include: Godday Obizuo in FHC/AK/64C/2024; Asabe Abubakar in FHC/BAU/CR/16/2026; Godwin Peter, Asuquo Christian and Olabode Sunday in FHC/AD/CR/66/2024.

In his reaction to the conviction of the drug offenders, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd) described the sentencing of the 11 drug kingpins to a combined 254 years in prison as a watershed moment in the country’s war against substance abuse and illicit drug trafficking.

He noted that the conviction of 974 offenders between January and March 2026 sends an unambiguous message that Nigeria is no longer a safe haven for those who trade in human lives and derive pleasure in destroying the lives of the nation’s youth.

According to him, “Securing 974 convictions in just three months is a testament to the relentless spirit of our officers and the thinning patience of the Nigerian state toward drug merchants. To the 11 kingpins who thought they were untouchable, their 254-year collective residency in correctional centres is a firm reminder that the long arm of the law has finally caught up with their greed.”

Marwa commended the Judiciary for the accelerated hearing of the cases, noting that swift justice is the most potent deterrent. To officers, men and women of the Agency, he said
“Your bravery in the face of danger is yielding fruit. We will continue to prioritize your welfare and provide the tools needed to stay ahead of these criminal syndicates.”

He urged Nigerians to remain vigilant, adding that “these victories belong to the citizens who provide the intelligence that fuels our operations.”

The post NDLEA Secures 974 Drug Convictions in Three Months as 11 Drug Kingpins Receive 254 Years’ Jail Term appeared first on Business Today NG.

Business

How oil mafia fought hard to stop my refinery — Aliko Dangote

Published

2 hours ago

May 15, 2026

Preport

Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, has revealed how entrenched interests benefiting from Nigeria’s fuel import and subsidy regime tried to frustrate the construction of his $20 billion refinery, describing them as a powerful “mafia” determined to preserve a lucrative subsidy system.

Mr Dangote said the resistance came from traders, shippers and local beneficiaries of Nigeria’s long-running petrol subsidy arrangement who saw the refinery as a threat to billions of naira in profits.

Speaking in an interview with Nicolai Tangen, chief executive officer of the Norwegian Sovereign Wealth Fund, he said these interests worked to delay access to project land and frustrate the refinery’s take-off.

“All this would have been blocked by what you call the mafia in oil business to make sure that we don’t come and address these issues,” he said.

He said securing land to build his world-class refinery took five years, with one site delayed for three and a half years and another for one and a half years, as vested interests sought to stop the project.

“But we were not deterred at all. We were actually focused. We knew what we were doing,” he added.

Mr Dangote explained that for decades Nigeria spent huge sums importing refined petroleum products despite being a major crude producer, creating a system that enriched a few players at the expense of the wider economy.

He said subsidy payments alone reached nearly $10 billion annually.

“The people who were actually benefiting because Nigeria was giving almost about $10 billion every year as subsidy… there are shippers who are making tonnes of money, there are traders who are making tonnes of money,” he said.

He added that a small group also profited from local product allocations under the subsidy regime.

“So these are the people that are not agreeing for us to settle down because they believe that no, we are coming here to displace them. Of course, that’s what we have done now,” he said.

The refinery, which required the construction of an entirely new port, roads and water infrastructure, employed 67,000 people during construction, the African billionaire said.

Mr Dangote said the project became far larger and more difficult than initially imagined, but abandoning it was never an option.

“When you get to the middle of the ocean, you realise that the tide was bad. When you go forward, it’s bad. When you go backwards, it’s bad. So you have to work forward,” he said, using the analogy to paint a broader picture of the difficulties he encountered while building the refinery.

He said the refinery has now changed the market structure and significantly reduced the influence of those who depended on imports and subsidy payments.

The plant currently sources over half of its crude from Nigeria while also importing from Angola, Libya and the United States.

“We source about 56 per cent from Nigeria and some from Angola. We buy quite a bit from Angola, we buy from Libya, and we buy from the US. At one point, we were doing about seven to eight cargoes of WTI from the US. But we’re getting more of Nigeria’s crude now, he said.

Mr Dangote explained that the refinery is currently buying 21 cargoes every month in Nigeria. “That’s how big we are,” he added, stating that they are more than doubling the refinery.

“You know, in the next 30 months, we will be at 1.4 million barrels per day, which is huge,” he noted.

Business

Nigerian SEC positions AI, data-driven regulation to attract investments

Published

11 hours ago

May 14, 2026

Preport

The Securities and Exchange Commission has said it is placing artificial intelligence, data analytics and technology-driven regulation at the centre of Nigeria’s capital market reforms to attract both local and foreign investments.

Speaking at the FSDH Investor Conference 2026 in Lagos, the Director-General of the SEC, Emomotimi Agama, said the future of global investing would increasingly depend on the quality of intelligence, data and technology supporting investment decisions rather than the size of capital alone.

According to him, the era of “intelligent investing” has already arrived, driven by artificial intelligence, real-time analytics, distributed ledger technology and algorithmic systems that are reshaping how investments are priced, allocated and protected globally.

He said, “We are at the threshold of what scholars and practitioners are calling the era of intelligent investing — a paradigm in which data does not merely inform decisions, but actively participates in them.”

Agama noted that the SEC had embarked on what he described as the most comprehensive regulatory reform agenda in its history to ensure Nigeria remains competitive in the evolving global investment environment.

He explained that the Commission’s reforms were aimed at creating a forward-looking market structure capable of supporting intelligent investing through faster settlement systems, tokenised securities and deeper derivatives markets.

According to him, the Commission’s seven-pillar capital market infrastructure vision includes plans to achieve T+1 settlement cycles, expand digital assets regulation and build a comprehensive framework for tokenised securities.

The SEC boss said the Commission was also developing governance frameworks for artificial intelligence applications in the capital market to ensure transparency, accountability and investor confidence.

“We are developing AI governance frameworks for capital market participants — frameworks that demand explainability, accountability and algorithmic fairness. An investor in Nigeria deserves to know not only what decisions were made on their behalf, but how those decisions were reached,” he said.

Agama stated that intelligent investing must be inclusive and accessible to ordinary Nigerians, adding that the SEC’s fintech-bank integration strategy targets about 20 million retail investors across the country.

He said technology and data-driven investing tools could democratise access to wealth creation opportunities for small businesses, artisans and low-income earners who had previously been excluded from formal investment systems.

The SEC DG also stressed the importance of collaboration between regulators, financial institutions, fintech firms and investors in building a resilient and technology-driven market ecosystem.

According to him, Nigeria’s capital market reforms and adoption of intelligent investing frameworks would strengthen investor confidence, improve market transparency and position the country as a leading investment destination in Africa.

He added that the Commission was strengthening investor protection through enhanced enforcement mechanisms, financial literacy programmes and the establishment of a dedicated Investor Protection Department.

Agama said, “Confidence is the ultimate asset in a capital market. Every disclosure we enforce, every fraud we prosecute, every investor we educate adds to the stock of market confidence.”

He further noted that Nigeria’s growing role in African capital market integration and digital finance initiatives would help channel long-term investments into infrastructure, gender finance and other critical sectors of the economy.

The SEC DG commended FSDH Merchant Bank for creating a platform for stakeholders to discuss the future of intelligent investing, adding that collaboration and data-sharing among market participants would be critical to building globally competitive financial markets in Nigeria.