The National Intelligence Service of the Republic of Korea (NIS) has commended the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for its exceptional effort and professionalism in apprehending a wanted 59-year-old drug baron, Ogbonnaya Kevin Jeff, whose 17 years of hiding in the dark to ship illicit drugs worth billions of naira across the world, was ended in February following his arrest by NDLEA operatives in Lagos.
This is even as the NIS delegation comprising Messrs Choi Younkwan and Kim Juseok sought the extradition of Ogbonnaya to South Korea to face pending drug charges.
NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi said: ” Ogbonnaya had, for years, been a pain in the neck of the Korean authorities following the persistent shipment of illicit drugs linked to him to South Korea. As a result, an Interpol red notice was issued against him, while the National Intelligence Service of South Korea sought the help of NDLEA in tracking and arresting him.
He had served a one-year prison sentence in Korea in 2007 for drug offences and was deported to Nigeria in 2008. After years of being on his trail, operatives of a Special Operations Unit of NDLEA eventually arrested him on Wednesday, 12th February 2025, at his hideout at No. 3, Ibukunoluwa Taiwo Close, off LASU Road, Lagos.”
Excited with the breakthrough, a delegation from the Korean Intelligence Service on Wednesday, April 16, 2025, paid the chairman/chief executive of NDLEA, Brig Gen Mohamed Marwa (rtd), a courtesy visit to deliver a letter of appreciation by the director of NIS, Taeyong Cho.
In his letter, Cho expressed gratitude for Marwa’s support and “The NDLEA’s exceptional cooperation during our recent joint operation, which led to the arrest of Kevin Jeff, a key figure in an international drug organisation.”
According to the Korean Intelligence chief, “Kevin Jeff was responsible for smuggling significant quantities of narcotics into the Republic of Korea, and the NIS had been tracking him for years. I am truly pleased that our two services have successfully carried out the first special cooperation, enabling us to bring him to justice. Without the NDLEA’s invaluable cooperation, those long-standing efforts might have been in vain.”
In his response, Marwa expressed appreciation for the Koreans’ commendation and assured them that the world can always count on Nigeria in the global effort against illicit drug trafficking.
He said he would study their request for extradition and work within the limits allowed by the Nigerian laws and the bilateral agreements between the two countries.
He expressed hope in the possibility of getting training opportunities for NDLEA officers in the Korean Intelligence training institution as part of the evolving partnership.
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