By Peter Onyekachukwu 
By Peter Onyekachukwu
Security operatives in Kogi State have arrested a suspected drug supplier identified as Owoloja Femi, for allegedly distributing hard drugs to bandits operating in Yagba West Local Government Area.
Femi, said to be the Chairman of the Okada Riders Association, Ejiba Branch, was apprehended around 7:30 p.m. on Saturday along Saminaka Road in Odo-Eri by the Joint Security Task Force (JTF) during a routine patrol.
He was reportedly transporting illicit substances meant for bandits when he was intercepted. However, some of his accomplices escaped with two cartons of drugs on motorcycles upon sighting the operatives.
Confirming the arrest, Hon. Tosin Olokun, Executive Chairman of Yagba West LGA and Chairman of Kogi State ALGON, commended the security team for their swift response. He said the suspect’s arrest was part of renewed efforts to dismantle criminal logistics networks aiding banditry in the region.
According to a statement issued on Sunday by the Chief Press Secretary to the Council, Adeyemi Babarinde, preliminary investigations revealed that Femi sourced the drugs from a chemist shop in Egbe for onward delivery to his collaborators hiding in the forest.
He was also found with ₦600,000, suspected to be proceeds or operational funds for the illegal transaction.
“All suspects found culpable will be handed over to relevant security agencies for prosecution in accordance with the law,” the statement read.
A resident, Bababgemi Oyewole, confirmed that the suspect was captured while trying to escape. “He was on his way to deliver the consignment to his customers in the bush when luck ran out on him,” he said.
Meanwhile, efforts to reach the Kogi State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP William, for confirmation were unsuccessful as calls and messages were not responded to at the time of filing this report.