The National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in Kogi has arrested an awaiting trial inmate, Ilori Olusola, who escaped from Koton-Karfe Prisons in a 2012 jail break.
Olusola was standing trial at the Federal High Court, Lokoja, for unlawful possession of 106.8 kilogrammes of indian hemp before the jail break.
Alhaji Idris Bello, the Commander of NDLEA in the state, said at the 2013 end-of-year news briefing in Lokoja that Olusola was re-arrested at Anyigba on Dec. 19 with 2.9 kilogrammes of Indian Hemp.
Bello said the suspect had been taken back to Koton-Karfe prisons for continuation of his trial, and that additional charges would be filed against him on resumption of the trial.
Presenting his score chart for the year, Bello said the command had recorded a total seizure of 6,499.809 kilogrammes of illicit drugs made up of 6,499.549kg of Indian hemp, 609 grammes of psychotropic substances and volatile solvents weighing 200 grammes.
The commander said that 23 vehicles were impounded and 225 suspects arrested in connection with the seizures, and that 36 of them were convicted and sentenced while 17 others were still awaiting trial.
Bello also said that 170 persons who were drug-dependent had been counselled and rehabilitated, and two others discovered to be innocent after due investigation were released.
He said the command had also destroyed 83 bags of harvested dry cannabis sativa in a government-reserved forest in Igalamela-Odolu Local Government Area.
He said the forest was taken over by “aggressive cannabis farmers who turned it into a hemp growing settlements”.
The commander called on the state government to assist the command with vehicles and office accommodation to enhance its operational capacity while reiterating its readiness to counter drug trafficking.
He commended other security agencies in the state for their cooperation and the media for their unflinching support.
