Four drug kingpins bag 95 years in jail, over N4.6 billion drug trafficking 

Four drug traffickers, Ogbuji Christian Ifeanyi, Iloduba Augustine Chinonye, and Shuaibu Nuhu Isa (a.k.a Don), alongside Zidon Zurga, have been convicted and sentenced to a total of 95 years in prison by the Federal High Court in Lagos and Yola, Adamawa State.

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) disclosed this in a statement issued by its Director, Media & Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, on Friday, March 7, 2025.

The four individuals have been sentenced to a total of 95 years in prison for trafficking cocaine and skunk worth over N4.6 billion.

“Ogbuji Christian Ifeanyi; Iloduba Augustine Chinonye; Shuaibu Nuhu Isa (a.k.a Don) and Zidon Zurga have been convicted and sentenced to a total of 95 years in prison by the Federal High Court in Lagos and Yola, Adamawa state over trafficking of cocaine and skunk worth over N4.6 billion,” they stated. 

According to the NDLEA, Ogbuji was arrested at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos on September 18, 2024, while arriving on an Ethiopian Airlines flight from Addis Ababa. He was caught with 817 wraps of cocaine weighing 19.40 kilograms, valued at N4.656 billion.

• This was not his first drug-related conviction. The NDLEA stated that Ogbuji was previously arrested at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, on May 10, 2023, for ingesting 93 pellets of cocaine weighing 1.986kg. He was convicted on July 13, 2023, and sentenced to two years in prison or a fine of N3 million, which he paid.
• He was also intercepted by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos, on September 18, 2024, during an inward clearance of Ethiopian Airlines flight passengers from Addis Ababa to Lagos. He was caught importing 817 wraps of cocaine weighing 19.40 kilograms, with an estimated street value of N4.656 billion.
• He was arraigned before the Federal High Court 12, Abuja, and convicted on July 13, 2023, where he was sentenced to two years imprisonment or an option of a N3 million fine, which he paid.

Following his September 2024 arrest, Ogbuji was arraigned before Justice Yellim Bogoro of the Federal High Court, Lagos, on January 16, 2025. On February 28, he was sentenced to five years imprisonment on count one with an option of a N7 million fine and 10 years imprisonment on count two without an option of a fine.

According to the statement, if he fails to pay the fine, he will serve a total of 15 years in jail. The court also ordered the forfeiture of monetary exhibits and other items found on him during his arrest.

Iloduba Augustine Chinonye was sentenced to 10 years for cocaine trafficking 

Iloduba, 51, was arrested by NDLEA operatives on December 31, 2021, at Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, for cocaine trafficking. He ingested 58 wraps of the drug, excreting 48 during transit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, while the remaining 10 were expelled in NDLEA custody after his arrest on January 1, 2022.

He was arraigned on two counts in charge number FHC/EN/CR/18/2022 before Justice Folashade Giwa Ogunbanjo of the Federal High Court, Enugu. After three years of prosecution, he was convicted and sentenced on March 5, 2025, to five years of imprisonment on each count, totaling 10 years, which will run concurrently from his conviction date.

Shuaibu Nuhu Isa and Zidon Zurga sentenced to 70 years for cannabis trafficking 

• Shuaibu Nuhu Isa, 55, and Zidon Zurga, 50, were arrested by NDLEA operatives on November 25, 2024, along the Numan-Yola road with 500.8kg of skunk, a strain of cannabis, concealed in a Toyota Hilux and a Prado SUV with a fake presidency number plate.
• They were arraigned before Justice Bala Usman in charge number FHC/YL/150/2024 and convicted on February 7, 2025.
• Each was sentenced to 35 years in prison on two counts, totaling 70 years, or pay a fine of N25 million each.
• The court also ordered the interim forfeiture of the vehicles used in trafficking the illicit drugs.

Reacting to the convictions, NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive Officer Brig Gen Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd) commended the courts and NDLEA officers involved in the investigations and prosecutions, stating that the convictions and forfeitures will enhance the agency’s fight against drug networks.