Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a long-wanted drug kingpin, Lekan Jimoh, popularly known as “Kanmo-Kanmo,” 12 years after his alleged involvement in the killing of three NDLEA officers.
Jimoh was arrested on Friday, January 16, 2026, in Owode town, Ogun State, following intelligence-led operations by the agency’s tactical teams. A search of his hideout led to the recovery of 69 kilograms of skunk, a potent strain of cannabis.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, said Jimoh had been on the agency’s wanted list since June 15, 2014, when he allegedly mobilised armed thugs to attack NDLEA officers who attempted to arrest him at his enclave in Ogun State.
According to Babafemi, the attack resulted in the killing of three officers, including Rabiu Usman Kazaure. While Jimoh escaped at the time, the agency continued its manhunt for him over the years.
“Following his involvement in the brutal killing of three NDLEA officers, Kanmo-Kanmo, who is notorious for drug trafficking, evasion of arrest and mobilising armed thugs against security agents was on Friday, January 16, 2026, tracked to his hideout in Owode town, Ogun State, by NDLEA tactical teams acting on credible intelligence,” Babafemi said.
He described the arrest as a major breakthrough, noting that it underscores the agency’s resolve to ensure that fugitives, regardless of how long they evade justice, are eventually brought to book.
Babafemi recalled that in a related operation on August 12, 2023, NDLEA operatives raided Jimoh’s residence in Ado-Odo, Ogun State, where 139 sacks of skunk weighing 1,922 kilograms were recovered. The suspect escaped arrest during that operation, but the property, which was used as a drug warehouse, was later forfeited to the Federal Government following court proceedings.
The agency also reported multiple arrests and seizures across the country in separate operations.
In Edo State, NDLEA operatives on Tuesday, January 13, raided Arokpa Forest in Uzebba town, Owan West Local Government Area, arresting a 53-year-old suspect, Isihor Edika, and seizing 320 kilograms of skunk and cannabis seeds.
In the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, a 44-year-old woman, Yinka Agboola, was arrested at her residence in Kaura District for the alleged online sale of illicit drugs. Items recovered from her home included 2.2 kilograms of skunk and quantities of cannabis oil reportedly produced in her kitchen. Another suspect, Tordue Pius Richard, 30, was arrested on January 13 at his residence in Abacha Estate, Abuja, with 148.3 grams of cocaine and skunk.
In Lagos, NDLEA operatives on Friday, January 16, arrested Dauda Kareem and Saheed Obisesan at Fadeyi, Mushin, with 118.1 kilograms of skunk. On the same day, officers recovered 116 kilograms of skunk from a warehouse in the New Market area of Enugu, Enugu State.
Along the Onitsha–Asaba Expressway in Delta State, two suspects, Zaharadeen Yahaya, 25, and Sanusi Maman, 23, were arrested on Thursday, January 15, while transporting 410,800 pills of tramadol, 84.2 litres of codeine syrup, 82,250 tablets of diazepam, 900 tablets of swinol and 65 pills of Molly.
In Oyo State, NDLEA operatives arrested Adetunji Ahmed Abayomi, 33, on Thursday, January 15, at Moniya, Ibadan, with 321 litres of “skuchies” and 2.5 kilograms of Colorado, a synthetic strain of cannabis. On the same day, Rasheed Ajao, 28, was arrested at Odo-Ona, Ibadan, with a combined 9.696 kilograms of Scottish Loud, skunk and Colorado. In another raid at the Agbeni area of Ibadan on Saturday, January 17, officers recovered 52,430 pills of tramadol and bromazepam from a store belonging to Orji Edwin, who is currently at large.
In Kwara State, NDLEA operatives on Tuesday, January 13, raided a residence in the Gamo area of Ilorin, seizing 42 bags of skunk weighing 387.40 kilograms.
In Jigawa State, an ex-convict, Gaddafi Ammani, 26, and his accomplice, Ahmed Sani, 32, were arrested on Saturday, January 17, at Nassarawa GRA, Ringim Local Government Area, with quantities of skunk and Exol-5 pills. Babafemi said Ammani attempted to escape during the operation and injured an NDLEA officer.
Commending the officers involved, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brigadier General Buba Marwa (retd.), praised commands in Ogun, Lagos, Apapa, Edo, Delta, Oyo, the FCT, Enugu and Kwara states for the arrests and seizures, urging them to sustain the momentum.
Marwa described the arrest of Jimoh as a triumph of justice and a testament to the agency’s persistence.
“You may run, and you may hide for a season, but the long arm of the law will eventually catch up with you,” he said, adding that Jimoh’s arrest closes a painful chapter that began with the killing of three NDLEA officers in 2014.
The NDLEA said the arrest comes amid intensified nationwide operations aimed at dismantling drug trafficking networks, apprehending long-wanted suspects, and disrupting the supply chains of illicit drugs across the country.
