NDLEA Arrests Nollywood Filmmaker, Another Over Drug Shipments

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have apprehended a notorious drug kingpin and Lagos socialite, 61-year-old Alhaja Aishat Feyisara Ajoke Elediye, also known as “Iya Ruka.”

The suspect, wanted for years for her role in leading a drug cartel in the Mushin area of Lagos, was arrested on Wednesday, January 1, 2025, at her residence in Okota, Lagos, following the interception of a truck carrying illicit drugs linked to her operations.

NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi, in a statement on Sunday, disclosed that a white Izuzu truck carrying 44 jumbo sacks containing 1,540 kilograms of imported cannabis was intercepted. The truck was driven by one of Alhaja Ajoke’s staff, 41-year-old Abideen Adio.

“Known in the drug underworld as ‘Iya Ruka,’ Alhaja Ajoke, as she is fondly called in social circles, has her true identity shrouded in mystery for years while she remained on the wanted list of NDLEA for leading one of the drug cartels operating from Mushin area of Lagos.

“The lid was however blown off her invincibility on Wednesday when NDLEA operatives acting on intelligence intercepted a white Izuzu truck carrying 44 jumbo sacks containing 1,540kgs of imported cannabis and driven by one of her staff, 41-year-old Abideen Adio,”

Babafemi said.

The operation led to a raid on her hideout on Adebayo Oyewole Street, off Ago Palace Way, Okota, where she was apprehended.

“On the surface, Alhaja Ajoke is a businesswoman who imports fabrics and shoes from China but beneath is a massive illicit drug trade. She is also recognized as the Iyalaje of Blessing Sisters, an influential club of society women in Lagos,”

Babafemi added.

Hollywood-Nollywood Filmmaker Arrested in Separate Operation

In a separate operation, NDLEA officers arrested a US-trained filmmaker and motivational speaker, Emeka Emmanuel Mbadiwe, on Friday, December 27, 2024. Mbadiwe was apprehended at his hotel room in Lekki after his partner, Uzoekwe Ugochukwu James, was earlier detained at a warehouse in Ajao Estate, Ikeja.

James was caught attempting to retrieve a shipment of 33 parcels of Loud, a potent strain of cannabis weighing 17.30 kilograms. The shipment had arrived at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, on December 24, 2024, from the United States aboard a Delta Airlines flight.