Four notorious drug kingpins have been convicted and sentenced to a total of 95 years in prison for trafficking large quantities of cocaine and skunk worth over N4.6 billion. The convicts, Ogbuji Christian Ifeanyi, Iloduba Augustine Chinonye, Shuaibu Nuhu Isa, and Zidon Zurga, were arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at various airports and locations.

Ogbuji Christian Ifeanyi, one of the convicts, was arrested at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos for importing 817 wraps of cocaine weighing 19.40 kilograms. This was barely 16 months after he was arrested and convicted for ingesting 93 pellets of cocaine. He was initially sentenced to two years imprisonment with an option of paying a fine of Three Million Naira (N3,000,000.00), which he paid and was set free. However, he returned to his criminal ways and was rearrested.

The other convicts, Iloduba Augustine Chinonye, Shuaibu Nuhu Isa, and Zidon Zurga, were also arrested for various drug-related offenses, including trafficking skunk and cocaine. Iloduba was arrested at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport in Enugu for ingesting 58 wraps of cocaine, while Shuaibu and Zidon were arrested in Adamawa state with 500.800kg of skunk concealed in a pilot Toyota Hilux vehicle.

The convictions and sentences were handed down by Federal High Courts in Lagos and Yola, Adamawa state. Ogbuji was sentenced to five years imprisonment on count one with an option of seven million naira fine and 10 years imprisonment on count two without an option of fine. Iloduba was sentenced to five years imprisonment on each count, bringing his total years in jail to 10 years. Shuaibu and Zidon were each sentenced to 35 years imprisonment on two counts, bringing their combined years in jail to 70 years or a fine of N25 million each.

The Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig Gen Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended the trial courts and the NDLEA teams for their diligence and professionalism in securing the convictions. He stated that the convictions and the forfeiture of the convicts' instruments of crime will further strengthen the deterrent effect of the NDLEA's ongoing effort to totally dismantle every drug network in the country.