A notorious drug baron and leader of a drug syndicate, Joachin Chikaodi Mbonu, has been arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), News About Nigeria reports.
The spokesperson of the agency, Femi Babafemi, disclosed this, stating that the 42-year-old baron was arrested alongside his associate.
He noted that the duo was arrested in Mbonu’s mansion, tucked in his Umuomi village, Uzogba-Ezenomi autonomous community, Ikeduru local government area of Imo State.
He added that the cartel is behind the production and distribution of deadly psychoactive substance, methamphetamine, popularly called ‘mkpuru mmiri’.
“The cartel with operational bases in Imo and Rivers state became a target of the Agency following intelligence indicating it is responsible for the distribution of substantial quantity of methamphetamine in South East, South South and other parts of the country.
“After weeks of surveillance, officers of a special operations unit of the agency, on Friday 5th July 2024, tracked and traced the drug lord to his village mansion in Imo state where he was caught with a member of his cartel, Kenneth Chibuike Ofoegbu, 34, with different quantities of methamphetamine, its precursor chemicals, a pump action gun and cartridges recovered.
“Exhibits recovered from the house include: 419.99 grams of methamphetamine; 750 grams of iodine, a precursor chemical for meth; 500 grams of sodium bicarbonate, a precursor chemical for meth; two electronic weighing scales and a pump action gun with four cartridges.
“The operatives moved swiftly to another of Mbonu’s hideout located at 11 Redemption Avenue, Port Harcourt, Rivers state where they recovered additional exhibits: 750 grams of processed sodium bicarbonate; 170 grams of plain sodium bicarbonate and 75 grams of meth,” he stated.
He further noted that while the kingpin cools his heels in custody, two of his mansions in Imo state have been marked for possible forfeiture to the federal government.
Mbonu had escaped from South Africa where he lived for years and mastered the art of cooking methamphetamine after he came under investigation for drug dealings.
