The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has captured and extradited the man it calls the mastermind behind a major heroin bust at Lagos airport last year.
The suspect, 52-year-old Festus Ibewuike, who also went by Chidibest Ibewuike, was picked up at the airport in Cotonou, Benin Republic, on September 2, 2026. The NDLEA said the arrest followed actionable intelligence.
According to a statement released in Abuja on Wednesday by the agency’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, Ibewuike had been on the run, moving between Mozambique and Nigeria through Benin. The NDLEA said he had settled in Mozambique and was running a hotel as a cover.
After the Cotonou arrest, NDLEA worked with INTERPOL offices in Nigeria and Benin to bring him back. A team of operatives flew to Cotonou on Friday, September 4, took custody of him, and flew him to Nigeria.
Ibewuike was declared wanted after NDLEA intercepted 49.70kg of heroin hidden inside cartons of metal-cutting machines at the Import Shed of Murtala Muhammed International Airport in February 2024.
That 12-day operation also led to the arrest of other members of the alleged syndicate, including his wife, Confidence Ndidiamaka Ibewuike. The agency said she regularly received drug parcels marked “ND” for him. The crackdown also led to 107 bank accounts being frozen and properties linked to the cartel forfeited.
The case, charge number FHC/L/205C/2024, is before Justice Ambrose Lewis-Allagoa at the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos.
Three suspects, Adinnu Felix Chinedu, Osita Emmanuel Obinna, and Uzochukwu Frankline, have already been convicted and sentenced. Three others, Chidiebere Reginald Peter, Ibewuike Ndidiamaka Confidence, and Igbokwuputa Onyinye Ireene, are still on trial.
Ibewuike was charged in absentia with Osita Chidozie Cyril and another man named Arinze. During initial questioning, he confirmed his identity and told investigators he had changed his name from Chidibest Ibewuike to Festus Ibewuike.
The NDLEA said he 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.”
