The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has declared a methamphetamine kingpin, Nnamuka Kelvin Uchenna, and three associates wanted following the discovery of a clandestine drug laboratory in Imo State, freezing nearly N9.84 billion in bank accounts.
The agency made this disclosure in a statement on Friday signed by Director, Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, revealing that it has also secured interim forfeiture orders on a filling station, multi-storey buildings and four SUVs linked to the syndicate.
Uchenna, also known as Odogwu, and his associates identified as Emmanuella Chinonso Iroka, Nnamuka Ifeanyi Kingsley and Ekechi Franklin Chijioke, also known as Ekene Okwunaga, were declared wanted by order of Justice Iniekenimi Nicholas Oweibo of the Federal High Court in Owerri following an application by NDLEA filed on July 3, 2026.
NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd) described the operation as a direct demonstration of the agency’s capacity to dismantle drug trafficking networks and disrupt the financial infrastructure sustaining them.
“This latest operation reaffirms our unwavering commitment to tracking down drug kingpins and their collaborators, no matter how sophisticated their network or how long they attempt to evade justice,” he said.
“The discovery of this clandestine methamphetamine laboratory in Njaba, and the subsequent freezing of nearly ten billion naira in illicit funds, alongside the forfeiture of a filling station, multi-storey buildings and four exotic SUVs, sends an unambiguous message that the illegal drug business is no longer a safe haven for criminals seeking to launder their ill-gotten wealth through legitimate enterprises,” he added.
“I want to assure Nigerians that the Agency will not relent in going after the fleeing suspects and anyone else linked to this syndicate. We will continue to deploy financial and forensic intelligence to trace, freeze and forfeit assets acquired through drug trafficking, just as we will not hesitate to invoke the full weight of the law against fugitives who think they can hide from justice,” Marwa concluded.
He appealed to members of the public with information on the whereabouts of the suspects to contact the nearest NDLEA office or reach out through the agency’s confidential lines.
“We remain committed to ridding our communities of the scourge of drug trafficking and its attendant social and economic harm,” he said.
Forensic investigation of the methamphetamine syndicate led to the identification and freezing of bank accounts linked to the wanted suspects, with a combined balance of N9,840,873,566.66.
The interim forfeiture orders secured by NDLEA cover a filling station, multiple multi-storey residential buildings and four Sport Utility Vehicles with plate numbers RLU 148 AJ, KJA 563 FZ, BWR 249 DY and FST 208 HU, all allegedly owned by members of the syndicate.
The scale of the financial assets linked to the syndicate, nearly N10 billion in bank accounts alone alongside significant physical assets, suggests a highly organised and financially sophisticated drug trafficking operation rather than a small-scale local production outfit.
The court order declaring the suspects wanted was made under suit number FHC/OW/CS/22/2026, with Justice Oweibo’s ruling giving the wanted declaration formal judicial backing that significantly raises the legal stakes for the fugitives and their associates.
The latest operation follows a series of high-profile crackdowns by the NDLEA on large-scale methamphetamine production networks across the country.
Earlier this year, the NDLEA dismantled a transnational methamphetamine production syndicate allegedly operated by a Nigerian drug cartel in collaboration with Mexican nationals, recovering illicit drugs and precursor chemicals valued at more than N480 billion and arresting 10 suspects.
Marwa described it as one of the agency’s most significant breakthroughs against transnational organised drug trafficking.
