- Notorious kingpin, five others now in custody
- Marwa engages Saudi authorities over pilgrims’ innocence
- Initiates moves to free detainees in Saudi
BY CHINYERE OBIORA – A drug-planting syndicate has been busted at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA), Kano, with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) warning there are no sacred cows in the fight against drugs in the country.
According to the Agency, a notorious drug kingpin, Mohammed Ali Abubakar, also known as Bello Karama, and five members of his syndicate are now in its custody for their role in a drug trafficking plot that implicated three innocent Nigerian pilgrims currently detained in Saudi Arabia.
Announcing the latest breakthrough at a media briefing press conference in Abuja, NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, alongside Director of Assets and Financial Investigation, Dr. Abdul Ibrahim, and Director of Prosecution and Legal Services, Theresa Asuquo, said the Agency’s commitment to combat drug trafficking remains uncompromising.
Babafemi stated that the NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive, Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd) ordered a full-scale investigation following complaints from the families of three Nigerian pilgrims detained in Jeddah.
He gave the detainees names as Mrs Maryam Hussain Abdullahi, Mrs Abdullahi Bahijja Aminu, and Mr Abdulhamid Saddiq, accused of trafficking illicit substances into Saudi Arabia despite having no prior links to drug crime.
The NDLEA’s Spokeman said investigations revealed that on August 6, 2025, the trio, who boarded Ethiopian Airline flight ET940 from Kano to Jeddah via Addis Ababa, had six additional bags secretly checked in against their names by members of a criminal syndicate, adding that three of these bags were later found to contain illicit drugs in Jeddah.
He said, “The bags containing illicit substances were traced directly to Ali Abubakar Mohammed, alias Bello Karama, the syndicate leader, who checked them in at MAKIA through compromised staff of the Skyway Aviation Handling Company (SAHCOL). He, however, boarded Egypt Air instead of Ethiopian Airline to evade suspicion.”
With the latest development, NDLEA said six members of the syndicate are now in custody, with four charged to court awaiting arraignment.
Among them are Ali Abubakar Mohammed (Bello Karama), Abdulbasit Adamu, Murtala Akande Olalekan, and Celestina Emmanuel Yayock.
The Authority disclosed that upon being questioned, Celestina confessed to checking in two bags for a fee of ₦100,000, while another accomplice, Jazuli Kabir, admitted collecting the same amount to check in two more bags. Financial transfers corroborating these confessions were also recovered by investigators.
Babafemi stressed that the three Nigerians detained in Saudi Arabia were “victims of circumstance, implicated by the activities of a criminal syndicate operating within the airport,” adding that the Agency is already engaging Saudi authorities to ensure their release.
“As a result, our Chairman, Brigadier General Marwa, who is attending an international drug conference, is scheduled to meet with officials of the General Directorate of Narcotics Control (GDNC) in Saudi Arabia to present our findings and push for the exoneration of these innocent pilgrims. If necessary, he is prepared to travel to Saudi Arabia personally to pursue the case to its conclusion,” NDLEA’s Spokesperson said.
The NDLEA further assured that while its commitment to combat drug trafficking remains uncompromising, it will never allow innocent Nigerians to suffer unjustly.
“This case reinforces our message that there are no sacred cows in the fight against drugs, but equally, the innocent must never be punished for crimes they did not commit”, Babafemi said.
This is as the NDLEA also praised the Ministry of Aviation, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Aviation Security (AVSEC), and the Department of State Services (DSS) for their swift collaboration and the interim measures already in place at MAKIA to prevent a recurrence.
