Crime

NDLEA declares India-based Nigerian couple wanted, arrest four cartel members in Lagos

Published by Tope Fakinlede on May 19th, 2024.

𝐍𝐃𝐋𝐄𝐀 𝐝𝐞𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐬 𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐚-𝐛𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐍𝐢𝐠𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐝, 𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐥 𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐬 in Lagos

NDLEA declares India-based Nigerian couple wanted, arrest four cartel members in Lagos

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has declared a couple, Kazeem Omogoriola Owoalade and Rashidat Ayinke Owoalade, wanted for running a cocaine cartel from India.

This follows the arrest of four members of the syndicate in Lagos, where a Sports Utility Vehicle was recovered and two houses traced to them were sealed for forfeiture to the Federal Government.

This was made known in a statement signed by the agency’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, and shared on its website on Sunday.

The statement read, “A couple, Kazeem Omogoriola Owoalade (alias Abdul Qassim Adisa Balogun) and Rashidat Ayinke Owoalade (alias Bolarinwa Rashidat Ayinke), who runs a cocaine cartel from India has been declared wanted by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency following the arrest of four members of the syndicate in Lagos where a Sports Utility Vehicle was recovered and two houses already traced to them sealed for forfeiture to the Federal Government.

“Two members of the syndicate: Imran Taofeek Olalekan and Ishola Isiaka Olalekan were arrested on April 3, 2024 following their bid to export 3.40kg cocaine on a Qatar Airlines flight going to Oman through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, MMIA Ikeja Lagos.

While Imran was the courier conveying the drug consignment to Oman, Ishola recruited him for the head of the cartel, which investigation has now revealed to be Alhaji Kazeem Omogoriola Owoalade whose Indian residence permit bears Abdul Qassim Adisa Balogun based in India.

“Efforts to dismantle his network in Nigeria paid off after five weeks of surveillance and follow up operations when another member of the syndicate, Hamed Abimbola Saheed, who works directly with the baron was arrested on Tuesday 14th May at Abule Egba area of Lagos. It was indeed Saheed who lodged Imran in a hotel a day before his aborted trip to Oman and equally dropped him and Ishola at the Lagos airport the day they were arrested.”