NDLEA CHAIRMAN ORDERS PURSUIT OF DRUG MONEY, NOT JUST DRUG DEALERS

NDLEA CHAIRMAN ORDERS PURSUIT OF DRUG MONEY, NOT JUST DRUG DEALERS

By Crime Correspondent

***




ABUJA – Chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, Buba Marwa, has ordered investigators and prosecutors to shift focus from arresting street-level drug peddlers to pursuing the billions of Naira in proceeds generated by narcotics trafficking.


Speaking during an advanced capacity building programme on financial investigations and asset tracing in Abuja, Marwa declared that arrests and seizures alone would have "limited impact" if the financiers and illicit wealth sustaining the drug threat remained untouched.


"It is not enough to arrest a courier or seize a consignment," Marwa told assembled NDLEA officers. "We must follow the money. We must identify the beneficial owners. We must trace assets across borders."


The directive comes as Nigeria faces increasing scrutiny over its role as both a transit route and consumption market for narcotics. Marwa urged investigators to develop expertise in following complex financial transactions and using digital evidence to build watertight cases for forfeiture and recovery.


NDLEA spokesperson Femi Buba Femi confirmed in a statement that the agency would immediately intensify efforts to trace and recover proceeds linked to drug trafficking and organised crime.


RELATED: The training programme, which involves international partners, focuses on cross-border asset tracing and the use of digital forensic tools.


📢 COMMENT PROMPTS:


Do you think Nigeria has the legal framework to successfully seize assets of drug kingpins, or do we need new laws?


Some say pursuing "big fish" in drug trafficking is dangerous because they have political connections. Is the NDLEA brave enough?


Should recovered drug money be used to fund rehabilitation centres or go into the consolidated revenue fund?


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