The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has arrested Alhaji Suleiman Ganiu Aremu, a notorious drug baron known as “Barryshine,” after a two-year investigation into his role in several cocaine smuggling attempts.
The NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, in a statement on Friday, noted that Suleiman was apprehended for his involvement in four failed attempts to export cocaine to Saudi Arabia and Qatar through Lagos’ Murtala Muhammed International
Airport.
Suleiman’s involvement was first revealed in 2022 when a female courier was caught with 400 grams of cocaine concealed in footwear on a Qatar Airways flight to Saudi Arabia. Investigations later uncovered that Suleiman’s brother had recruited the courier.
Several other drug mules were apprehended in the following months, linking back to Suleiman through financial transactions and connections with associates, including Oluwafemi Akande Abidoye, also known as “Igbono.”
A federal court has now declared both Suleiman’s associates, Abidoye and Olanrewaju Abdullahi Ramon, wanted. The judge ruled, “An order is hereby made declaring these individuals wanted for their involvement in drug trafficking with Suleiman Aremu Ganiu.”
Suleiman, who claims to run real estate and hospitality businesses, is currently being detained while the NDLEA continues its investigation.
In the statement, the NDLEA Chairman, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd) praised the agency’s officers, stating, “This arrest demonstrates that the long arm of the law will always catch up with criminals, no matter how long it takes.”
He commended the thorough work of the MMIA command, whose investigations led to the conviction of three traffickers and the eventual capture of Suleiman.
