Go After Cartels’ Money – Marwa Orders NDLEA

The Chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (retd.), has called for a stronger financial offensive against drug cartels, saying the agency must target the wealth and financial networks that keep the illicit narcotics business alive.

Marwa said the fight against drug trafficking should no longer be measured mainly by the number of suspects arrested or quantities of drugs intercepted, arguing that criminal networks could quickly recover from such losses if their financiers and assets remained untouched.

He spoke in Abuja on Wednesday at the opening of a specialised training programme for investigators and prosecutors on financial investigation, asset tracing and recovery.

The programme is also focused on forfeiture and the management of assets connected to drug trafficking and other organised crimes.

The NDLEA chairman said drug trafficking should be viewed as a business built around financial gain, with networks extending beyond those physically caught transporting or selling narcotics.

According to him, financiers, money launderers, facilitators and other professionals who help criminals conceal or move illicit funds are critical to the survival of drug organisations.

He therefore charged investigators to follow financial trails alongside conventional drug investigations.

“If we arrest the courier but leave the financier untouched, seize the drugs but allow the proceeds to remain with the criminal enterprise, or secure a conviction without recovering the illicit wealth, we have addressed only part of the problem,” Marwa said.

He said weakening the financial strength of traffickers would make it more difficult for criminal organisations to replace seized drugs, recruit new members and finance further operations.

Marwa warned that drug networks were becoming more difficult to track as criminals increasingly turned to technology and sophisticated financial arrangements to hide their proceeds.

He said investigators now had to contend with cryptocurrency transactions, layered corporate structures and legitimate businesses allegedly being used to disguise the source and ownership of criminal assets.

The development, he said, required a corresponding improvement in the technical capabilities of law enforcement officers.

According to Marwa, NDLEA personnel must be able to unravel complicated transactions, determine the real owners of assets, gather digital evidence and trace proceeds of crime beyond Nigeria’s borders.

He said, “The sophistication of organised crime demands a corresponding sophistication in our response.

“We must move from crime detection to crime disruption; from arresting offenders to dismantling criminal enterprises; and from confiscating drugs to depriving traffickers of the wealth that motivates and sustains their activities.”

Marwa said the NDLEA had made progress in intercepting narcotics and prosecuting suspects, but stressed that the next phase of the agency’s operations must focus on making the illicit drug business financially unattractive.

He said traffickers should not be allowed to retain properties, bank balances and other benefits acquired from criminal activities after their drugs had been confiscated.

The NDLEA chairman said successful enforcement should leave criminal networks without the resources required to rebuild their operations.

He added that the agency’s goal was to turn narcotics trafficking into a venture where the risks substantially outweighed potential profits.

Marwa also identified connections between narcotics trafficking and other criminal activities, saying drug networks often operate within a broader organised crime ecosystem.

He listed corruption, money laundering, cybercrime, human trafficking and illegal arms dealing among crimes that could intersect with the narcotics trade.

“The drug trafficking ecosystem intersects with money laundering, corruption, cybercrime, human trafficking, illicit arms trafficking and other forms of organised crime,” he said.

Marwa said such connections made cooperation between different law enforcement institutions essential.

He also called for closer coordination within the NDLEA, particularly among officers handling intelligence, investigations, prosecutions, forensic analysis and financial and asset investigations.

According to him, intelligence gathered by one department should feed into the work of others rather than remain isolated.

Officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), and the Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) attended the programme.

Marwa said the institutions’ involvement was important because successful asset recovery often requires cooperation between investigators, prosecutors, and the judiciary.

Among the experts engaged for the training were recently retired Circuit Judge Michael Hopmeier of the Southwark Crown Court in the United Kingdom; former ICPC Chairman Prof. Bolaji Owasanoye (SAN); and the Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN).

Other participants included experts in cryptocurrency, money laundering and international asset recovery.

Beyond identifying and confiscating criminal assets, Marwa warned officers against mismanaging recovered property.

He said an asset could lose considerable value between seizure and eventual disposal if it was not properly managed.

According to him, mishandling recovered assets could also create doubts about the integrity of the forfeiture process.

He therefore demanded transparency at every stage, including seizure, forfeiture, custody, management and eventual realisation of recovered assets.

Marwa urged officers attending the training to share the expertise acquired with colleagues and ensure that the lessons were reflected in future investigations.

He said the agency expected participants to become better equipped to trace suspicious transactions, locate concealed assets, produce stronger evidence and obtain forfeiture orders against drug traffickers.

The Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice John Tsoho, also backed closer cooperation between the judiciary and agencies combating narcotics and financial crimes.

In a goodwill message delivered on his behalf by Justice Inyang Ekwo, Tsoho said the changing nature of drug-related offences required more sophisticated law enforcement techniques.

He said the scope of narcotics crime had expanded beyond conventional drug trafficking to areas such as financial crime and cryptocurrency-enabled money laundering.

According to the message, the subject of the training demonstrated “how extensive and multifaceted drug crimes are and can be, and their ever-expanding frontiers, which ought to be tackled by effective and sophisticated law enforcement.”

Tsoho also commended the NDLEA leadership for its efforts against drug trafficking, saying stronger cooperation between the Federal High Court and law enforcement institutions could enhance Nigeria’s reputation in the international fight against organised crime.