By Ken Chiwendu
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency NDLEA has declared a couple,Kazeem Omogioriola Owoalade ,alias Abdul Qassim Adisa Balogun and Rashidat Ayinke Owoalade who runs a cocaine cartel wanted following the arrest of four members of the syndicate in Lagos.
The NDLEA revealed that a sports utility vehicle was recovered upon the arrest with two houses already traced to the drug kingpins sealed for forfeiture to the Federal Government..
According to the Agency,two members of the syndicate, Imran Taofeek Olalekan and Ishola Isiaka Olalekan were arrested on April 3,2024 following their bid to export 3.40kg Cocaine to Oman via a Qatar airline flight at the Murtala Muhammad International Airport,MMIA, Ikeja, Lagos.
While Imran was the courier conveying the drug consignment to Oman, Ishola recruited him for the head of the cartel which , investigation has now revealed to be Alhaji Kazeem Omogioriola Owoalade whose Indian residence permit bears Abdul Qassim Adisa Balogun based in India.
Efforts to dismantle his network in Nigeria paid off after five weeks of surveillance and follow up operations when another member of the syndicate, Hamed Ambibola Saheed who works directly with the baron was arrested on Tuesday,14th May ar Abule Egba area of Lagos.
Ir was indeed Saheed who lodged Imran in a hotel before his aborted trip to Oman and equally dropped him and Ishola at the airport when they were arrested.
During a search of Hamed House , NDLEA operatives recovered some phenacetin ,a cutting agent for Cocaine, weighing 900 grams.
He confessed that the recovered substance was what was left of the consignment Imranwas taking to Oman the day he was arrested.
His arrest led to a follow up operation at the home of the Owoalade couple at 20 Eyiaro street Ogudu,Irioke Lagos, where another suspect was arrested and a new model Toyota RAV 4 SUV marked FKJ -773j belonging to Rashidat and additional 400 grams of Cocaine recovered in addition to already prepared suitcases to be used for illicit drug concealment , digital weighing scale and other paraphernalia.
