NDLEA Arrests Wanted Drug Kingpin ‘Kanmo-Kanmo’ 12 Years After Murder of Three Officers

NDLEA Arrests Wanted Drug Kingpin ‘Kanmo-Kanmo’ 12 Years After Murder of Three Officers

ABUJA — Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a long-wanted drug kingpin, Lekan Jimoh, popularly known as Kanmo-Kanmo, ending a 12-year manhunt linked to the killing of three NDLEA officers in 2014.

Jimoh was apprehended on Friday, January 16, 2026, at his hideout in Owode town, Ogun State, following credible intelligence and a coordinated operation by NDLEA tactical teams. A total of 69 kilograms of skunk, a strain of cannabis, was recovered from him during the arrest.

The suspect, notorious for large-scale drug trafficking, violent resistance to arrest and the use of armed thugs against security operatives, was responsible for orchestrating a mob attack on NDLEA officers on June 15, 2014, during an attempted arrest at his enclave. The attack resulted in the brutal killing of three officers, including Rabiu Usman Kazaure.

Although Jimoh escaped at the time, the Agency sustained its pursuit. In another operation on August 12, 2023, NDLEA operatives raided his residence in Ado-Odo, Ogun State, where 139 sacks of skunk weighing 1,922 kilograms were recovered. Jimoh again evaded arrest, but the property used as a drug warehouse was later forfeited to the Federal Government following court proceedings.

The arrest of Jimoh marks a major breakthrough in the Agency’s efforts to bring fugitives to justice, regardless of how long they evade the law.

Meanwhile, NDLEA recorded multiple arrests and seizures across several states in coordinated nationwide operations.

In Edo State, operatives raided the Arokpa Forest in Uzebba town, Owan West Local Government Area, on Tuesday, January 13, arresting Isihor Edika (53) and seizing 320 kilograms of skunk and cannabis seeds.

In the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), a 44-year-old woman, Yinka Agboola, was arrested on Friday, January 16, for selling illicit drugs online. NDLEA recovered 2.2 kilograms of skunk and litres of cannabis oil produced in her kitchen from her residence in Kaura District. Another suspect, Tordue Pius Richard (30), was arrested the same week with 148.3 grams of cocaine and skunk at Abacha Estate, Abuja.

In Lagos, operatives seized 118.1 kilograms of skunk from Dauda Kareem and Saheed Obisesan at Fadeyi, Mushin, while a separate operation led to the recovery of 157,519 bottles of codeine syrup at Apapa Port during a joint examination with Customs and other security agencies.

In Delta State, NDLEA arrested Zaharadeen Yahaya (25) and Sanusi Maman (23) along the Onitsha–Asaba Expressway with 410,800 tramadol pills, 84.2 litres of codeine syrup, 82,250 diazepam tablets, 900 swinol tablets and 65 pills of Molly.

In Oyo State, operatives arrested Adetunji Ahmed Abayomi (33) at Moniya, Ibadan, with 321 litres of skuchies and 2.5 kilograms of Colorado, a synthetic cannabis strain. Another suspect, Rasheed Ajao (28), was arrested at Odo-Ona with 9.696 kilograms of assorted cannabis substances, while 52,430 tramadol and bromazepam pills were recovered from a store at Agbeni area belonging to a suspect currently at large.

In Kwara State, NDLEA seized 42 bags of skunk weighing 387.4 kilograms from a residential building in Gamo area of Ilorin. In Jigawa State, an ex-convict, Gaddafi Ammani (26), and his accomplice Ahmed Sani (32) were arrested with skunk and exol-5 pills. Ammani reportedly attempted to escape by climbing rooftops and injured an NDLEA officer while armed with a machete.

Across the country, NDLEA also sustained its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitization campaigns in schools, religious centres and communities, including outreach programmes in Kano, Lagos, Benue, Katsina and Niger states.

Commending the officers involved in the operations, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd.), described the arrest of Jimoh as a victory for justice.

“You may run, and you may hide for a season, but the long arm of the law will eventually find you,” Marwa said.

He added that the arrest closes a painful chapter for the Agency and honours the memory of the three officers murdered in 2014.

“For twelve years, this individual lived with the blood of our gallant officers on his hands. Today, we have proven that the NDLEA does not forget its own. This arrest is for the families who have waited 12 years for justice,” he said.