General
NDLEA Arrests Lagos Pastor, Wife Transporting 11kg Skunk
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The pastor in charge of the Celestial Church of Christ at Agonvi Sea Beach in the Sakpo area of Seme border, Badagry, Lagos State, Mr Afolabi Hodonu, has been arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).
The 45-year-old cleric was apprehended on Thursday, April 2, 2026, alongside his 35-year-old wife, Mrs Success Hodonu, with blocks of skunk weighing about 11kg.
A statement issued on Sunday by the spokesman of the NDLEA, Mr Femi Babafemi, disclosed that the couple were stopped at the Gbaji checkpoint, and a search of their Honda Pilot SUV led to the recovery of the drugs concealed in hidden parts of their vehicle.
Their arrest followed the apprehension of a fake security agent, Mr Sunday Samuel, 35, at the same checkpoint on Monday, March 30, while conveying 24.5kg of skunk from the Seme border to Lagos.
The statement further disclosed that NDLEA operatives also successfully dismantled a drug trafficking syndicate in high stakes intelligence led operations that lasted three weeks during which cocaine consignments concealed in tins of palm kernel extract heading to the United Kingdom were intercepted and the warehouse where the shipments are packaged raided, while all three layers of the group were unravelled, leading to the arrest of the kingpin.
The breakthrough began on Wednesday, March 11, 2026, when NDLEA officers of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Strategic Command, Ikeja, Lagos, intercepted 3.10 kilograms of cocaine at the export shed of the airport. The illicit substance was meticulously hidden inside tins of palm kernel extract intended for shipment to the UK.
Two suspects handling the shipment, Idris Olayiwola Amoo and Akinlami Akinsoji Adedoyin, were promptly arrested.
To unravel the sender and the arrowhead of the drug syndicate, a well-coordinated sting operation was carried out on Thursday, April 2, leading to the arrest of Ezemuwo Joel, who operates under a fake identity as Ajayi.
His arrest provided the link to the syndicate’s head, 52-year-old King Arinze, who was flushed out of a hideout in the Isolo area of Lagos.
He was thereafter taken to his warehouse at 11, Ola Ifa Street, Bucknor, Isolo, where NDLEA operatives recovered 886 tins of palm kernel extract prepared for drug concealment; industrial tools, including a sealing machine, tin openers, paint sprays, 52 grams of cannabis sativa and a pack of hand gloves. Arinze has since confessed to personally draining the oil from the tins to conceal the cocaine.
In a separate operation in Borno state, NDLEA operatives on Wednesday, April 1, intercepted a female drug supplier to bandit groups operating between the North East and Chad, 28-year-old Aisha Adamu. She was arrested along the Gamboru Ngala road in possession of 4.3 kilograms of Colorado, a potent synthetic strain of cannabis.
In Adamawa State, NDLEA officers on patrol along Namtari road, Yola South, on Monday, March 30, intercepted a trailer marked RUW 947 XA transporting 48,000 pills of tramadol. The truck driver, Abdulaziz Ismail Korede, was arrested while a follow-up operation led to the arrest of the recipient, Idris Adamu.
While 60-year-old Idiatu Oladejo was arrested with 15kg of skunk in Isale Osun, Osogbo, Osun state, on Wednesday, April 1, NDLEA operatives, acting on credible intelligence, raided the Itaogbolu forest, Akure, Ondo State, where they recovered 351 kilograms of skunk and its seeds. No fewer than 28,600 capsules of tramadol were seized from a 66-year-old Aminu Usman Gembu when he was arrested at Aliade, Benue state, on Wednesday, April 1.
In Edo State, a suspect, Roland Owie, 37, was arrested on Monday, March 30, following the raid of his warehouse at Egbanke community, Orhionmwon LGA, where 1,378 kilograms of skunk were recovered.
A notorious drug dealer, 40-year-old Ayantola Omodunmomi (a.k.a Iya Elle) was on Wednesday, April 1, arrested at Eleta area of Ibadan, the Oyo State capital. Her arrest follows intelligence and surveillance on how she uses her 11-year-old daughter, Anjola, to deliver illicit drugs to her customers. At the time of her arrest, a 45.6kg skunk was recovered from her warehouse.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The share certificates, seven landed properties, and $2.1 million linked to the former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Godwin Emefiele, have been finally forfeited to the federal government.
The final forfeiture was affirmed by a unanimous judgment delivered by a five-member panel of the Supreme Court on Friday, July 17, 2026.
The panel led by Justice Ibrahim Mohammed Saulawa set aside the judgment of the Court of Appeal and affirmed the decision of the Federal High Court, Lagos, which had ordered the final forfeiture of the assets on the grounds that they were reasonably suspected to have been acquired with proceeds of unlawful activities.
Following the final forfeiture order made by the Federal High Court, Mr Emefiele challenged the decision before the Court of Appeal, which reversed the judgment of the trial court.
Dissatisfied with the appellate court’s decision, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) approached the apex court, which has now restored and affirmed the judgment of the Federal High Court.
The forfeited properties include a fully detached duplex of identical structures situated at No. 17B Hakeem Odumosu Street, Lekki Phase 1, Lagos; an undeveloped parcel of land measuring 1,919.592 square metres, covered by Survey Plan No. DS/LS/340, situated at Oyinkan Abayomi Drive (formerly Queens Drive), Ikoyi, Lagos; and a bungalow situated at No. 65A Oyinkan Abayomi Drive (formerly Queens Drive), Ikoyi, Lagos;
Others are a four-bedroom duplex situated at 12A Probyn Road, Ikoyi, Lagos; an industrial complex under construction on 22 plots of land in Agbor, Delta State; eight units of undetached apartments on a plot measuring 2,457.60 square metres, situated at No. 8A Adekunle Lawal Road, Ikoyi, Lagos; and a full duplex together with all its appurtenances on a plot measuring 2,217.87 square metres, situated at 2A Bank Road, Ikoyi, Lagos.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Ebonyi State Police Command has insisted on conducting a post-mortem examination to determine the cause of death of Miss Mary Habila, a physiotherapist who died at the residence of the Minister of Works, Mr David Umahi, in Uburu, Ohaozara Local Government Area of Ebonyi State.
The demise of the deceased, which occurred in late June, recently became public and has sparked calls for a probe from many quarters.
Meanwhile, the family of the deceased has approached the court to stop the autopsy, but experts tell Business Post that the family has no authority to file an affidavit, as this is a case of suspected murder against the state and not the family.
Mr Umahi has also called for a probe.
The Ebonyi Police Command said the autopsy was necessary to establish the cause of death and support its ongoing investigation, despite objections from the deceased’s family.
The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Joshua Ukandu, disclosed this in a statement issued on Wednesday, stating that the police had commenced a comprehensive investigation into the circumstances surrounding Ms Habila’s death.
Mr Ukandu said preliminary investigations revealed that the deceased and a colleague were members of the medical team attached to the Minister of Works and had accompanied him to his hometown in Uburu, where she later died in a room within the compound of his residence.
According to him, detectives from the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) have visited the scene, documented relevant evidence and obtained statements from persons connected to the incident.
He added that the command had concluded arrangements to engage a qualified pathologist to carry out a post-mortem examination, which it considers crucial to determining the actual cause of death.
Mr Ukandu explained that the police became involved in the matter after receiving a distress call on June 27, 2026, from the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), Ohaozara Division, informing the command of a medical emergency involving Habila and requesting his presence at the David Umahi Federal Teaching Hospital, Uburu.
“On arrival, the DPO was informed by hospital authorities that Miss Mary Habila had been brought in dead.
He immediately briefed the Commissioner of Police, who directed that the matter be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) for thorough investigation,” the statement read.
The police spokesperson disclosed that while the family of the deceased had opposed the conduct of an autopsy, the command considered the procedure necessary in view of the circumstances surrounding the death.
“The Command therefore awaits the attendance of the family or their duly appointed representative, as their presence is essential to the conduct of the post-mortem examination,” Mr Ukandu said, assuring the public that the investigation would be conducted professionally, transparently and without bias, stressing that every necessary step would be taken to uncover the circumstances surrounding Habila’s death.
Mr Ukandu further assured that the command would continue to provide updates as the investigation progresses.
Family Seeks to Stop Autopsy
The family of the deceased, who is a staff member of the David Umahi Federal University of Medical Sciences and was seconded to the Federal Ministry of Works, formally requested the withdrawal of further investigation into her death and declined an autopsy.
In an affidavit titled Affidavit of Withdrawal of Case filed before the High Court of Justice of Ebonyi State, her father, Tanko Habila Wisdom, said the family was not alleging any foul play in her death and wished to proceed with her burial.
According to the affidavit, Mary Habila died on June 27, 2026, in Uburu, Ohaozara Local Government Area of Ebonyi State.
The deponent stated that before her death, Habila was a staff member of the David Umahi Federal University of Medical Sciences and had been seconded to the Federal Ministry of Works in Mabushi, Abuja, where she served in the Office of the Minister of Works for about three years.
By Adedapo Adesanya
A Federal High Court in Apo, Abuja, has ordered the final forfeiture of billions of Naira worth of assets linked to businesswoman and socialite, Ms Aisha Achimugu, to the federal government.
Justice Jude Onwugbuzie granted the order following an application by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), directing the permanent forfeiture of jewellery valued at N4.645 billion, 11 exotic vehicles worth N4.293 billion, $50,000 and N30 million in cash.
The ruling followed the EFCC’s request for the final forfeiture of the assets, which the commission said were linked to Ms Achimugu.
The forfeited assets include: Jewellery valued at N4,645,170,294.90; 11 exotic vehicles worth N4,293,000,000; $50,000 in cash; and N30,000,000 in cash.
The court’s judgment vests ownership of the assets in the federal government, bringing the forfeiture proceedings to a close.
In March, Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja affirmed the final forfeiture of $13 million linked to the Lagos socialite. However, in an interview in April, she denied that $13 million was discovered by the EFCC in her residence, describing the claim as inaccurate and misleading.
Justice Nwite had, on August 22, 2025, granted the anti-graft agency’s motion ex parte for an interim order forfeiting the sum of $13 million linked to Oceangate Ltd to the federal government over allegations that the fund was proceeds of unlawful activity.
The judge had then directed the commission to publish the order in a national daily for interested people to show cause within 14 days why the fund should not be permanently forfeited to the federal government.
In 2024, the businesswoman gained significant media attention for a seven-day birthday celebration in Grenada, which was attended by high-profile guests, reportedly including Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu.
The socialite also defended her widely publicised birthday celebration, noting that it had been “planned for 10 years” and was not funded with any money under investigation.
