Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have captured the most wanted drug lord in Lagos State, Sulaiman Jimoh, also known as Temo.

NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi revealed this in a statement on Wednesday, noting that the 57-year-old was apprehended at his hideout after initial resistance from him and his associates.

The spokesperson stated that over the last two years, the NDLEA had intercepted large consignments of illicit drugs worth billions of naira linked to Jimoh, but he remained elusive. Previous encounters with him and his armed gang in his Mushin stronghold had led to gunfights.

“Some of the recent seizures of his shipments include: a 14,524.8 kilograms of Ghana Loud, a potent strain of cannabis sativa, smuggled into Lagos from Ghana in two trucks and a J5 bus intercepted at Ojuelegba area of Lagos in the early hours of Sunday, 28th January 2024; two truckloads of the same substance weighing 8,852kg intercepted at Eleko beach, Lekki Lagos on 4th May 2023, and 252kg of Loud seized from his Mushin enclave on Wednesday, 26th July 2023. Indeed, in the last two encounters, his men engaged NDLEA operatives in gunfights.

“The drug kingpin was notorious for always being on the move to evade arrest. However, with persistence and determination of the Agency, aided by modern tools and intelligence, the concerted effort to get him paid off at 10 am on Monday, 22nd July 2024, when NDLEA’s surveillance teams on his trail tracked and pinned him down at Igbarere street, Mushin. A reinforcement of about 50 operatives was immediately mobilized to the area while he was attempting to escape in a Mercedes Benz SUV GLE 350 marked 01G-300G.

“His attempt to escape by mobilizing hoodlums to engage and distract the operatives failed. He was overpowered and whisked away from the chaotic scene, while his men surrendered to the superior firepower of the anti-narcotic agents who also succeeded in recovering the Mercedes Benz SUV the suspect was found in.”

In his reaction to the arrest, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended the officers and men of the Lagos State Command, Special Monitoring Task Force, and other formations tasked with the assignment of capturing the suspect for their resilience, vigilance, and professionalism.