Lami Mai Rigima, a notorious queen of drug cartel allegedly supplying psychoactive substances to traffickers in Taraba State, has been arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), months after she was declared wanted.
Lami, 40-year-old, came under the NDLEA’s searchlight when a number of traffickers, arrested in the state in 2021 and early this year, fingered her as their supplier.
As contained in a release by the NDLEA Director, Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, the manhunt for Lami paid off on Monday, when operatives tracked her to her hideout in Iware Village in Ardo Kola Local Government Area of Taraba.
“The search for Lami began in October 2021, following the arrest, prosecution and conviction of a drug dealer, 50-year-old Abdullahi Madaki.
“After serving his brief jail sentence, Madaki returned to the illicit trade with Lami, still as his supplier, but was rearrested on 13 February 2022, while another trafficker, Jamilu Hassan (20), who is also a member of Lami’s supply chain, was nabbed on 24 February,” Babafemi stated.
Also in Adamawa State, NDLEA operatives arrested a cross-border drug trafficker, Emeka Okiru (40), who was allegedly caughtbwith 32,700 tablets of Tramadol 225mg under the brand name: Royal and Tramaking.
“He was arrested at Garden City, Mubi, Mubi North Local Government Area on Tuesday while preparing to supply his customers who came from Republic of Cameroon. The drugs were found concealed in cartons of paintbrush,” the release stated.
In Oyo State, different quantities of Cocaine, amphetamine and cannabis were recovered from four suspects: Adetola Tosin; Akeem Kazeem; Korede Ahmed and Abdulgafar Nureni.
The four suspects were arrested in Omi-Adio, Ido Local Government Area; Oje (Ibadan North); Iwo Road, (Ibadan North-East) and Sabo, Mokola, (Ibadan North-West) when operatives raided parts of the state on Tuesday.
The release also stated that, at least, 172 kilograms of cannabis was recovered from two suspects: Zaidu Mohammed Kamba and Hussaini Dauda in Kamba area of Kebbi State, on Monday, by NDLEA operatives.
Chairman/Chief Executive of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd), commended the officers and men of the Taraba, Adamawa, Kebbi and Oyo state commands of the agency for their efforts.
He also charged them and their compatriots in other commands across the country to sustain the tempo of offensive action against the drug cartels in every part of the country.