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A suspected drug baron, Godspower
Chibogu, has been apprehended by operatives of the National Drug Law
Enforcement Agency in connection with 57 hectares of cannabis plantation valued
at N6.8bn.
It was learnt that the officials nabbed the 51-year-old man at his residence in Ibadan, Oyo States after the commander of the agency’s Joint Task Force, Mr. Muyiwa Adeniyi, led a team to destroy a cannabis farm at Gbongan Forest reserve in Osun State.
It was learnt that the officials nabbed the 51-year-old man at his residence in Ibadan, Oyo States after the commander of the agency’s Joint Task Force, Mr. Muyiwa Adeniyi, led a team to destroy a cannabis farm at Gbongan Forest reserve in Osun State.
PUNCH Metro learnt that the officials took Chibogu to the scene of the crime and impounded his Peugeot 406 car.
The team was said to have stormed the farm with a tractor in an operation that lasted for three days following an order by the NDLEA Chairman, Mr. Ahmadu Giade. While confessing to the crime, the suspect, who hails from Delta State, said he had left his ‘unprofitable’ transport business to invest in drug cultivation.
“I gave money to people to plant
cannabis for me. I used to be a transporter but when my business was recording
losses, I sold my buses and invested the money in cannabis cultivation. This is
the first time I will be arrested,” he said.
Giade said the agency had embarked on the operation in response to the spate of cannabis cultivation in the South-West. He said,
“The estimated street value of 676,800kg of destroyed cannabis on the 57 hectares is N6.8bn. This is the first time the NDLEA is engaging the services of a tractor in the destruction of a cannabis farm. The farms were so large that it took several days and weeks to destroy manually. In the past few months, we have destroyed several cannabis plantations. Cannabis remains the major drug problem in the country. It accounts for over 90 per cent of total drugs seized by the NDLEA. We are therefore making efforts to tackle the problem at the grassroots level. Taking the battle to the farms has yielded significant success. We are determined to destroy all cannabis farms and cut off supply to users. This is one of our strategies of reducing crime and violence in our country. More barons shall be arrested and cannabis plantations destroyed.”
Giade said the agency had embarked on the operation in response to the spate of cannabis cultivation in the South-West. He said,
“The estimated street value of 676,800kg of destroyed cannabis on the 57 hectares is N6.8bn. This is the first time the NDLEA is engaging the services of a tractor in the destruction of a cannabis farm. The farms were so large that it took several days and weeks to destroy manually. In the past few months, we have destroyed several cannabis plantations. Cannabis remains the major drug problem in the country. It accounts for over 90 per cent of total drugs seized by the NDLEA. We are therefore making efforts to tackle the problem at the grassroots level. Taking the battle to the farms has yielded significant success. We are determined to destroy all cannabis farms and cut off supply to users. This is one of our strategies of reducing crime and violence in our country. More barons shall be arrested and cannabis plantations destroyed.”
The NDLEA Director of Operations and General Investigation, Mr. Olugbenga Mabo, said the ex-transporter had been on the list of wanted barons.
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