Crime
DEFENCE MINISTER SAYS COUP PLOTTERS TARGETED HIM FOR ASSASSINATION
The Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa (rtd), has disclosed that he was marked for assassination by officers implicated in an alleged coup plot against the Federal Government.
General Musa made the revelation on Sunday night during an appearance on Channels Television’s One-on-One programme, where he said the plot to overthrow the government had been set in motion even before President Bola Ahmed Tinubu assumed office.
According to him, the coup plotters planned to kill him immediately after his arrest if their attempt to seize power had succeeded.“I was also a target, I am sure you know,” Musa, the immediate past Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), said during the programme. “I was supposed to be arrested, and if I refused, I was supposed to be shot.”
The Defence Minister described the suspects as disgruntled and unserious elements who were fully aware of the consequences of their actions and should now face the law following their arrest and detention.
In October last year, the military announced the arrest of 16 officers over acts of indiscipline and breaches of service regulations. The arrests occurred before Musa retired from active military service and was later appointed Minister of Defence by President Tinubu.
Musa explained that most of those allegedly involved in the plot were junior officers of low ranks who lacked access to strategic military weapon depots, stressing that a coup could not succeed under such circumstances.
He further noted that staging a successful coup in modern-day Nigeria is extremely difficult, unlike in earlier years when military takeovers were more feasible.
Providing insight into the motivation behind the alleged plot, Musa said the dissident officers were individuals who failed promotion examinations and became aggrieved.
He added that promotion within the Armed Forces is highly competitive and dependent on passing mandatory assessments.
Meanwhile, authorities last week confirmed that investigations had identified several officers accused of plotting to overthrow the government—acts described as inconsistent with the ethics, values, and professional standards of the Armed Forces of Nigeria (AFN).
In a statement, the Director of Defence Information, Major General Samaila Uba, said officers found to have cases to answer would be formally arraigned before appropriate military judicial panels.“
Accordingly, those with cases to answer will be formally arraigned before an appropriate military judicial panel to face trial in accordance with the Armed Forces Act and other applicable service regulations,” Uba said.
A Nigerian national, James Junior Aliyu, has been sentenced to 90 months (seven and a half years) in prison in the United States for his involvement in a large-scale wire fraud and money laundering scheme.
According to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Aliyu played a key role in a transnational cybercrime network that targeted business email systems and defrauded individuals and organisations of millions of dollars.
Investigations revealed that the fraud scheme involved hacking into corporate email accounts and using them to divert funds through fraudulent transactions. Authorities said the operation affected multiple victims and formed part of a broader business email compromise (BEC) conspiracy.
Aliyu was arrested in South Africa in 2022 following an international investigation involving Interpol and local law enforcement before being extradited to the United States to face trial.
The 30-year-old later pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering. As part of the sentence, the court ordered him to forfeit $1.2 million and pay $2.4 million in restitution to victims.
Authorities also confirmed that Aliyu will be deported after completing his prison term.
Operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) have arrested a suspected gunrunner, Kelvin Ebikeniye Dugo, in Cross River State, intercepting a cache of 850 rounds of live ammunition.
The arrest, which took place on March 16 at Ivara Esu Estate in Odukpani Local Government Area, followed credible intelligence on the suspect’s alleged plan to acquire the ammunition.
Security sources said Dugo was apprehended shortly after receiving the consignment, which had been concealed inside food items. The ammunition was reportedly supplied by another suspected gunrunner, Azenda Barnabas, also known as Jagaban, based in Aliade, Benue State.
Items recovered during the operation included 850 rounds of live ammunition and two empty AK-47 magazines.
The sources noted that the DSS has stepped up operations nationwide in a bid to dismantle gunrunning networks and curb the proliferation of illegal arms.
They added that the latest arrest underscores the agency’s ongoing commitment to tracking down and prosecuting individuals involved in arms trafficking across the country.
Crime
NDLEA Arrests 74-Year-Old Man with 11kg Cocaine at Abuja Airport, Seizes Large Drug Consignments in Nationwide Raids
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 74-year-old man, Ikwuakalom Emeka, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja after officers discovered a large consignment of cocaine concealed in his luggage.
NDLEA operatives intercepted the suspect at the departure hall while he was attempting to board a British Airways flight to London, United Kingdom for what he claimed was a vacation.
According to NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, a search of the suspect’s luggage uncovered 11 kilograms of cocaine hidden inside food items such as ground dry pepper. The drugs were carefully wrapped in foil papers and balloons to evade detection.
Lagos Island Drug Raids
In a separate operation in Lagos, NDLEA operatives acting on credible intelligence arrested Maryam Olalowo at Ikad Hotel and Suites while she allegedly attempted to sell 89 grams of cocaine and 20 grams of Canadian Loud, a strain of cannabis.
She was reportedly with her three children, including an infant, at the time of the arrest. During interrogation, she said the drugs belonged to her husband, Ibrahim Olalowo Olatunji, who was later arrested the same day.
Investigations revealed that Olatunji had previously been arrested, convicted and sentenced to two and a half years imprisonment in 2015 for a similar offence.
Codeine and Tramadol Interceptions
NDLEA operatives also arrested Kalilou Simpara and Saidu Ibrahim at Ebetu Ero, where 68,000 pills of tramadol were recovered from a truck that was being prepared for transportation to Benin Republic.
A follow-up operation at Idumota Market led to the arrest of the alleged owner of the consignment, Nnamdi Cyprian. NDLEA officers also recovered a parcel containing 1,000 tablets of tramadol (250mg) that had already been prepared for waybill delivery.
In another raid at the same market on March 13, operatives arrested Nwanosike Kelvin and recovered 47,500 ampoules of pentazocine injection from his shop.
Other Arrests Across Nigeria
In Kano, NDLEA officers arrested Magaji Dan Azumi, 42, in the Bebeji area with 386 kilograms of skunk.
Similarly, operatives in Gwagwalada recovered 282.2 kilograms of skunk from a suspect identified as Isah Wako.
In Edo State, NDLEA said its operatives raided the Egwa Forest Reserve in Aduan village, where Chinedo Odalonu was arrested. Officers also destroyed large cannabis farms in the forest and recovered 16.5 kilograms of skunk from the site.
The NDLEA said the operations form part of its ongoing nationwide crackdown on drug trafficking and abuse.