The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested and repatriated a 52-year-old fugitive, Festus Ibewuike (also known as Chidibest Ibewuike), over his alleged connection with a 49.70-kilogram heroin consignment seized at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, in 2024.
The agency said Ibewuike was arrested on September 2, 2026, at an airport in Cotonou, Benin Republic, after more than two years of efforts to apprehend him, it was reported.
He was subsequently arrested and handed over to NDLEA operatives on September 4, upon collaboration with the Nigerian and Beninese bureaus of the International Criminal Police Organization, and brought back to Nigeria for prosecution.
NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, revealed this in a statement on Wednesday.
The case dates back to February, 2024 when NDLEA operatives at the Lagos airport intercepted 49.70kg of heroin hidden inside cartons containing metal-cutting machines at the cargo terminal’s Import Shed.
The seizure was the largest single consignment of heroin recorded at the airport, the agency said.
The NDLEA said the discovery was following a 12 days coordinated operation that led to the arrest of several alleged members of the trafficking network.
One of those arrested was Ibewuike’s wife, Confidence Ndidiamaka Ibewuike, who investigators claimed routinely received drug consignments with the code “ND” on behalf of her husband.
The agency said investigations into the alleged syndicate also led to the freezing of 107 bank accounts and forfeiture of properties linked to the group.
The allegations against defendants who have not been convicted are still pending before the courts.
Some of the suspects were arraigned after the investigation before Justice Ambrose Lewis-Allagoa of the Federal High Court, Ikoyi, Lagos, in Charge No. FHC/L/205C/2024.
The NDLEA said that three defendants, Adinnu Felix Chinedu, Osita Emmanuel Obinna and Uzochukwu Frankline have been convicted and sentenced.
Three others, Chidiebere Reginald Peter, Confidence Ndidiamaka Ibewuike and Igbokwuputa Onyinye Ireene, are still on trial, the agency said
Ibewuike, Osita Chidozie Cyril and a suspect only identified as Arinze were charged in absentia after they were not arrested at the time.
NDLEA said Ibewuike fled to Mozambique and ran a hotel business there while dodging Nigerian law enforcement.
Investigators also allege that he sometimes traveled between Mozambique and Nigeria via the neighboring Benin Republic.
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The agency said intelligence on his movements ultimately led to his arrest in Cotonou on 2 September.
NDLEA said it later collaborated with INTERPOL authorities in Nigeria and Benin Republic to achieve the transfer of custody as a team of its operatives journeyed to Cotonou on September 4 to receive him.
The agency said the suspect, who changed his name from Chidibest Ibewuike to Festus Ibewuike, confirmed his identity during preliminary questioning after his return.
The NDLEA said it transferred Ibewuike to its Central Exhibit Store in Ikoyi on Sept 5.
There, the agency said, he pointed out bags of heroin stamped with the “ND” marking that investigators had linked to him.
The NDLEA’s investigation includes these allegations which would be subjected to the judicial process.
The anti-narcotics agency further said its investigation revealed Ibewuike’s alleged connection with an earlier case involving seizure of 40.255kg of methamphetamine.
The case, Charge No. FHC/L/203C/2013, was heard before Justice Hadiza Rabiu Shagari of the Federal High Court, Lagos.
The NDLEA said the proceedings involved one Chidi Ihedioha, who was finally convicted in 2023.
The agency did not say in its Wednesday statement that Ibewuike himself was convicted in connection with that earlier case.
Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), described the arrest of Ibewuike as a major breakthrough in the agency’s bid to arrest wanted drug suspects.
“This arrest is a major breakthrough in our determination 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,” Marwa said.
He warned other suspects who are wanted by the agency that leaving the country would not halt efforts to bring them before the courts.
“As I have always promised, the long arm of the NDLEA will catch up with anybody engaged in this illicit trade, no matter how long it takes or how far they run,” he added.
Referring to the latest case, Marwa said, “Festus Ibewuike ran for over two years, hiding under a change of name and a new life abroad, but today he is back in Nigeria to face the 49.70kg heroin seizure linked to his network.”
The arrest should serve as a warning to the other wanted suspects, he added, “The Agency will not relent until every one of you is brought to book.”
Marwa also commended the cooperation between the Nigerian and Benin authorities, particularly the INTERPOL National Central Bureaus of both countries, which resulted in the arrest and transfer of Ibewuike to Nigeria.
