Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a wanted drug kingpin and Lagos socialite, 61-year-old Alhaja Aishat Feyisara Ajoke Elediye, on Wednesday, January 1, 2025.
Newsonspot reports that the arrest took place at her mansion in the Okota area of Lagos, following the interception of a truck loaded with illicit drugs handled by one of her staff.
This was disclosed in a statement on Sunday by the Director, Media & Advocacy, NDLEA, Femi Babafemi.
Alhaja Ajoke, also known in the drug trade as “Iya Ruka,” has been a notorious figure in the underworld. Despite her prominent social status, her true identity remained a mystery for years. She was listed as a wanted individual by the NDLEA for leading a drug cartel operating out of the Mushin area of Lagos.
The breakthrough occurred on January 1, 2025, when NDLEA operatives intercepted a white Isuzu truck carrying 44 jumbo sacks containing 1,540 kilograms of imported cannabis. The truck was being driven by her employee, 41-year-old Abideen Adio. Following the interception, agents raided her residence at 33 Adebayo Oyewole Street, off Ago Palace Way, Okota, where she was apprehended.
While publicly known as a businesswoman importing fabrics and shoes from China, Alhaja Ajoke secretly operated a large-scale illicit drug trade. She also holds the title of Iyalaje of Blessing Sisters, an influential club of Lagos socialites.
In a separate operation, NDLEA officers arrested US-trained Nollywood filmmaker and motivational speaker Emeka Emmanuel Mbadiwe on Friday, December 27, 2024, at a hotel in Lekki. This followed the arrest of his associate, Uzoekwe Ugochukwu James, earlier that day at a warehouse in Ajao Estate, Ikeja. Ugochukwu was apprehended while retrieving a shipment of 33 parcels of Loud, a potent cannabis strain weighing 17.30 kilograms. The consignment, concealed in wooden boxes, arrived on December 24, 2024, via a Delta Airlines flight from the United States.
In Kwara State, two individuals were arrested on December 29, 2024, for producing and distributing drug-laced cupcakes. The suspects, 24-year-old graduate Khadijat Abdulraheem and 20-year-old University of Ilorin student Ayomide Morakinyo, were apprehended at Tanke-University of Ilorin Road, Ilorin. A search of their apartment led to the recovery of 42 drug-laced cupcakes.
Meanwhile, an ex-convict, Sodade Sunday Eniola, previously sentenced to four years for drug trafficking in June 2024, was rearrested for passport racketeering by NDLEA’s MMIA Strategic Command. Eniola had initially paid a fine of N750,000 to avoid his prison term. Investigations in December 2024 uncovered 52 passports concealed in shipments headed to Canada, Russia, and other countries. The passports were hidden in shoe soles and food items, leading to the arrest of four syndicate members.
In Rivers State, NDLEA officers, in collaboration with Customs and other agencies, seized 316,800 bottles of codeine-based syrup from two containers at the Port Harcourt Ports Complex on December 31, 2024, acting on credible intelligence.
In Kano, operatives raided the Mafarki area of Dala Local Government on December 31, 2024, recovering 149,090 pills of tramadol and exol-5 from a local dealer, 45-year-old Ismail Muhammad.
The NDLEA also intensified its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) campaigns, engaging communities, schools, and religious centers across the country. Activities included sensitization programs at Ido-Osi Central Market in Ekiti State and a lecture during Juma’at prayers at Birnin Kudu Central Mosque, Jigawa State.
Commending the efforts of NDLEA commands nationwide, Chairman/CEO Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd) applauded the agency’s balanced approach to reducing drug supply and demand.
