Combined Prison Term: Justice Musa Kakaki of the Federal High Court in Lagos sentenced fugitive drug trafficker Ntoruka Emmanuel Chinedu and former international footballer Hunkarin Segun George to a total of 24 years in prison without the option of a fine [cite: Justice-Musa-Kakaki-of-the-Federal-High-Court-Lagos-jailed-fugitive-drug-trafficker-Ntoruka-Emmanuel-Chinedu-and-ex-international-footballer-Hunkarin-Segun-George-for-a-combined-24-years., The-court-gave-Chinedu-22-years-and-Hunkarin-two-years-without-fine-options-as-NDLEA-boss-Brig-Gen-Mohamed-Buba-Marwa-retd-praised-the-judgment.].....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

• Chinedu’s Sentence: Chinedu received 20 years for a previous 2015 drug case involving 6.25kg of cocaine, plus an additional 2 years for conspiracy, totaling 22 years behind bars [cite: NDLEA-spokesman-Femi-Babafemi-said-Chinedu-absconded-after-September-2015-arraignment-over-6-25kg-cocaine-but-operatives-rearrested-him-at-MMIA-on-June-24-2025., Delivering-judgment-Justice-Kakaki-sentenced-Chinedu-to-20-years-imprisonment-without-an-option-of-fine-for-the-unlawful-importation-of-6-25kg-cocaine., The-judge-imposed-an-additional-two-year-prison-term-also-without-an-option-of-fine-for-conspiring-dengan-with-Hunkarin-to-unlawfully-import-the-additional-800-grams-of-cocaine., The-sentences-brought-Chinedu-s-total-prison-term-to-22-years.].

• Hunkarin’s Sentence: The former Brazilian-league footballer was handed a two-year custodial sentence for conspiracy after being caught waiting at the airport car park to collect the illicit consignment [cite: The-court-gave-Chinedu-22-years-and-Hunkarin-two-years-without-fine-options-as-NDLEA-boss-Brig-Gen-Mohamed-Buba-Marwa-retd-praised-the-judgment., Further-investigations-led-NDLEA-operatives-to-Hunkarin-a-former-professional-footballer-who-had-spent-several-years-playing-for-clubs-in-Brazil., The-agency-said-Hunkarin-was-waiting-at-the-airport-car-park-to-collect-the-cocaine-consignment-from-Chinedu-when-operatives-tracked-and-arrested-him., Hunkarin-meanwhile-received-a-two-year-custodial-sentence-for-conspiracy-bringing-the-combined-sentences-imposed-on-the-two-convicts-to-24-years.].

Background and Arrest

• The Decade-Long Flight: Chinedu originally absconded after being arraigned in September 2015 and jumping bail, remaining a fugitive for nearly ten years [cite: NDLEA-spokesman-Femi-Babafemi-said-Chinedu-absconded-after-September-2015-arraignment-over-6-25kg-cocaine-but-operatives-rearrested-him-at-MMIA-on-June-24-2025., Chinedu-who-had-been-on-the-run-for-nearly-10-years-after-jumping-bail-in-an-earlier-cocaine-trafficking-case-received-a-total-of-22-years-imprisonment-while-Hunkarin-was-sentenced-to-two-years.].

• Rearrest: NDLEA operatives successfully rearrested him on June 24, 2025, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) while he attempted to smuggle an additional 800 grams of cocaine from Addis Ababa [cite: NDLEA-spokesman-Femi-Babafemi-said-Chinedu-absconded-after-September-2015-arraignment-over-6-25kg-cocaine-but-operatives-rearrested-him-at-MMIA-on-June-24-2025., The-agency-said-Chinedu-remained-at-large-for-almost-a-decade-before-operatives-rearrested-him-on-June-24-2025-at-the-Murtala-Muhammed-International-Airport-Ikeja-Lagos., At-the-time-of-his-arrest-he-was-allegedly-attempting-to-smuggle-another-800-grams-of-cocaine-into-Nigeria-aboard-an-Ethiopian-Airlines-flight-from-Addis-Ababa.].

Reactions

• NDLEA Commendation: NDLEA Chairman Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.) praised the judiciary and commended operatives, noting that the decade-long pursuit highlights the agency’s persistence in tracking down drug fugitives [cite: The-court-gave-Chinedu-22-years-and-Hunkarin-two-years-without-fine-options-as-NDLEA-boss-Brig-Gen-Mohamed-Buba-Marwa-retd-praised-the-judgment., Reacting-to-the-conviction-the-Chairman-and-Chief-Executive-Officer-of-the-NDLEA-Brig-Gen-Mohamed-Buba-Marwa-retd-commended-the-judiciary-describing-the-judgment-as-further-demonstration-of-its-commitment-to-tackling-drug-trafficking., According-to-him-the-rearrest-of-the-convict-after-almost-10-years-on-the-run-demonstrated-the-agency-s-doggedness-patience-and-thoroughness-in-tracking-fugitives.].

Parliamentary Directive: The House of Representatives committee investigating the controversial Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) ordered the Inspector-General of Police to present self-acclaimed DG Adeniyi Adeyemi before the panel by 12 noon on Wednesday.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

• Necessity of Appearance: Committee chairman Yusuf Gagdi stressed that Adeyemi’s physical presence is mandatory to verify documents and protect the integrity of the institutions whose names have been subverted.

Police Investigation and Fraud Charges

• Court Arraignment: Representing the IGP, ACP Bashir Abdullahi confirmed that the police investigated the case late last year and have already filed an eight-count charge against Adeyemi at the Federal High Court for conspiracy and fraud.

• Impersonation Petitions: Investigators received petitions—including one from the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President—accusing Adeyemi of falsely posing as the Director-General of both the PFIPC and the Presidential Economic Advisory Council.

• Alledged Schemes: The suspect allegedly leveraged the fake identity to secure office space at the Federal Secretariat, attempt to recruit 300 personnel, plan a World Investment Summit, and improperly attach a ₦1.32 billion allocation to the unlegislated agency in the 2026 budget.

Massive Document Forgery Uncovered

• Forged Signatures: When lawmakers compared signatures on documents attributed to the State House with official correspondence, the police confirmed they did not match.

• 29 Forgeries Identified: Gagdi revealed that investigators uncovered roughly 29 forged documents involving fake approvals from the State House, SGF office, Head of Service, and Ministry of Finance, with multiple agencies already disowning the paperwork.

Invasion: Around 200 heavily armed bandits disguised in military uniforms launched a coordinated raid on the Unguwan Lalle community in Sabon Birni Local Government Area, Sokoto State [cite: Residents-told-Daily-Trust-that-about-200-armed-men-struck-from-about-eight-p-m-Sunday-to-two-a-m-Monday-looting-shops-homes-and-rustling-livestock., According-to-Daily-Trust-residents-said-the-heavily-armed-bandits-numbering-about-200-stormed-the-community-from-different-directions-and-initially-deceived-residents-into-believing-that-they-were-security-personnel.].                                                                                                                                                                       Duration & Destruction: Operating from approximately 8:00 p.m. on Sunday until 2:00 a.m. on Monday, the attackers killed at least four people, injured several others, looted shops and homes, and rustled livestock [cite: Residents-told-Daily-Trust-that-about-200-armed-men-struck-from-about-eight-p-m-Sunday-to-two-a-m-Monday-looting-shops-homes-and-rustling-livestock., During-the-prolonged-attack-the-assailants-reportedly-dressed-in-military-uniform-killed-no-fewer-than-four-people-and-injured-several-others-when-they-looted-homes-and-shops-and-rustled-an-unspecified-number-of-livestock-belonging-to-residents.].....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

• Identified Victims: Two of the deceased were identified as Bilyaminu Wakkala and Danbaki Tulunawa, while the other two victims were from the nearby Kongurus village.

Tactics and Security Response

• Deception: Exploiting their fake military uniforms, the assailants easily gained access, surrounded the village, and positioned gunmen with rocket-propelled grenades at strategic points while opening fire on fleeing residents [cite: A-resident-who-spoke-about-the-incident-said-the-attackers-took-advantage-of-their-military-uniforms-to-gain-access-to-the-community-before-unleashing-terror-on-the-residents., We-thought-they-were-soldiers-because-they-were-wearing-military-uniforms-They-surrounded-the-village-opened-fire-on-anyone-trying-to-escape-ransacked-our-homes-carted-away-our-livestock-and-looted-goods-from-our-shops-the-resident-said., He-explained-that-the-attack-began-while-residents-were-observing-the-Isha-prayer., According-to-the-resident-the-bandits-strategically-positioned-some-of-their-men-armed-with-rocket-propelled-grenades-in-different-parts-of-the-community.].

• Timing: The assault occurred shortly after military troops, who had responded earlier to a farmer’s killing, withdrew from the area back to their base [cite: Residents-said-the-attack-occurred-less-than-an-hour-after-troops-who-had-responded-to-another-bandit-attack-earlier-in-the-day-withdrew-from-the-community., A-resident-said-the-military-had-arrived-in-two-armoured-vehicles-after-suspected-bandits-allegedly-killed-a-farmer-in-the-area., The-soldiers-responded-quickly-and-stayed-in-the-village-until-about-8-p-m-before-returning-to-their-base-Just-a-few-minutes-after-they-left-the-bandits-came-back-wearing-military-uniforms-he-said.].

• Official Response: Sokoto State Police Command spokesperson, DSP Ahmad Rufa’i, confirmed the initial killing of a farmer on Sunday but stated he had not yet been briefed on the subsequent community-wide attack [cite: Sokoto-State-Police-Command-spokesperson-DSP-Ahmad-Rufai-confirmed-a-farmer-was-killed-on-Sunday-but-said-he-had-not-been-briefed-on-the-later-attack., However-the-spokesperson-for-the-Sokoto-State-Police-Command-DSP-Ahmad-Rufa-i-confirmed-that-a-farmer-was-killed-in-the-area-on-Sunday., I-have-received-a-report-confirming-the-killing-of-one-person-in-the-area-on-Sunday-However-I-have-not-yet-been-briefed-about-the-other-reported-attack-on-the-community-he-said.].