The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Ahmadu Giade, has explained how the agency was able to get alleged drug trafficker, now Senator-elect, Buruji Kashamu, under house arrest in Lagos.
Officials of the agency had on Saturday stormed the Lekki home of Kashamu, who was allegedly nick-named “God” in the US, and got him restrained therein.
To place Kashamu on house arrest, the agency had disarmed Kashamu’s personal guards manning his gates.
NDLEA in a statement on Sunday, said that, as at the time of his arrest, the agency allowed Kashamu’s legal attorneys – Daniel Onamusi and Barrister Oloyede – and close family members, including his wife and adult daughters, to speak with him and attest to his well-being.
The agency said the house arrest was preparatory to his being extradited to the United States of America, where he would be tried for drug trafficking-related offences.
Giade made these disclosures in a statement issued by the agency’s Head of Public Affairs, Mitchel Ofoyeju.
The NDLEA boss said Kashamu has been a target of both the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for over 20 years.
He said the house arrest is sequel to a formal request for extradition which the agency received from the Embassy of the United States of America pending his arraignment before the Federal High Court on Monday, May 25, 2015.
He said the senator-elect was indicted in the Northern District of Illinois, United States on charges brought against him by ICE.
The statement reads in part, “Kashamu, who U.S. court documents alleged was known in his days as the leader of a prolific heroin trafficking ring based in Chicago, Illinois as “God,” “Daddy,” and “Kasmal,” is wanted to stand trial for charges of conspiracy and importation of controlled substances, namely heroin, into the United States dating back to 1994.
“Kashamu, who holds dual Nigerian/Beninese citizenship, has taken multiple preemptive actions to thwart U.S. extradition efforts such as making fanciful claims that his is a case of mistaken identity, and that his deceased brother is responsible for the crimes he is being sought after in the United States.
Follow Us