The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has arrested and brought back to Nigeria the suspected kingpin behind the 49.70kg heroin shipment intercepted at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, in 2024.
The NDLEA disclosed this in a statement signed by its Director, Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, in Abuja on Wednesday.
The suspect, 52-year-old Festus Ibewuike, also known as Chidibest Ibewuike, was “arrested at the airport in Cotonou, Benin Republic on Wednesday 2nd September 2026” after actionable intelligence led security operatives to him.
The arrest ended Ibewuike’s attempt to evade the authorities by moving between Mozambique and Nigeria through Benin Republic. The NDLEA said he had relocated to Mozambique, where he operated a hotel business as a front.
After his arrest, the agency worked with INTERPOL in Nigeria and Benin Republic to secure his return. According to the NDLEA, “a team of NDLEA operatives” was deployed to Cotonou on Friday, September 4, to take custody of him before he was conveyed to Nigeria.
Ibewuike had been declared wanted after the NDLEA seized 49.70kg of heroin concealed in cartons of metal-cutting machines at the Import Shed of the MMIA cargo terminal in February 2024.
The seizure followed a 12-day operation which also led to the arrest of members of the alleged trafficking syndicate, including Ibewuike’s wife, Confidence Ndidiamaka Ibewuike. The agency said she routinely received drug-laden parcels marked with the code “ND” on his behalf.
The operation also resulted in the freezing of 107 bank accounts and the forfeiture of properties linked to the cartel.
The suspects were charged before Justice Ambrose Lewis-Allagoa of the Federal High Court, Ikoyi, Lagos, in charge number FHC/L/205C/2024.
Three suspects — Adinnu Felix Chinedu, Osita Emmanuel Obinna and Uzochukwu Frankline — have been convicted and sentenced, while Chidiebere Reginald Peter, Ibewuike Ndidiamaka Confidence and Igbokwuputa Onyinye Ireene are still standing trial.
Ibewuike, who was charged in absentia alongside Osita Chidozie Cyril and another suspect identified as Arinze, later confirmed his identity during preliminary interviews and told investigators that he had changed his name from Chidibest Ibewuike to Festus Ibewuike.
The agency said the suspect was taken to its Central Exhibit Store in Ikoyi, Lagos, on Saturday, September 5, where he “formally identified the parcels of heroin, bearing the ‘ND’ code, established to be linked to him.”
Reacting to the arrest, the NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), said the development demonstrated the agency’s determination to apprehend fleeing drug suspects.
Marwa said, “This arrest is a major breakthrough in our resolve to track down and bring to justice every drug baron who thinks that fleeing Nigeria’s shores puts them beyond the reach of the law.”
He added, “The long arm of the NDLEA will catch up with anyone involved in this illicit trade, no matter how long it takes or how far they run.”
Marwa commended the Nigerian and Beninese INTERPOL National Central Bureaus for their role in facilitating the suspect’s transfer of custody.