By AGATHA N Uju, Correspondent, Abuja
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), has arrested a 58-year-old fugitive drug lord named Uzoma Valentine Ilomuanya who has been on the wanted list of NDLEA and British authorities for over 15 years.
Ilomuanya was apprehended at a location in Lagos on Monday, 23rd February 2026, following a high-stakes well-coordinated operation by officers of a Special Operations Unit of the Agency.
His arrest ends a long-standing cat-and-mouse game with the law following his long history of drug related crimes across Nigeria and the United Kingdom, which highlight a persistent involvement in global narcotics trade.
According to the NDLEA, “he was first arrested in February 2003 and convicted in the United Kingdom for drug trafficking; sentenced to nine years but was later released after two years in jail upon appeal”.
The NDLEA stated this in a statement by the Director, Media & Advocacy, Mr Femi Babafemi and shared with The First Mail newspaper in Abuja.
“He was again arrested in the UK in July 2011 for drug-related offences. “He was granted administrative bail but jumped jurisdiction and fled to Nigeria”, the statement added.
It continues: “Ilomuanya was in November 2018 arrested in Nigeria by NDLEA operatives following the discovery of two clandestine methamphetamine laboratories in his Obinugwu, Orlu LGA country home in Imo state and at his No. 3 Barrister Declan Uzoma Close Lagos house where officers recovered 77.960 kilograms of methamphetamine and extensive production equipment.
“He was subsequently charged before a Federal High Court, Lagos after which he jumped court bail and has been on the run since then”.
The Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), has described the development as a significant breakthrough in the Agency’s relentless war against drug cartels.
He commended the officers of the Special Operations Unit for their professionalism, resilience, and diligence in tracking down the fugitive, stressing that the Agency remains unwavering in its commitment to dismantling drug trafficking networks operating within Nigeria.
