Ogbonnaya Kevin Jeff, a.k.a ‘Big Boss’, a suspected drug baron, has been arraigned by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) before the Federal High Court sitting in Lagos.
In a five-count charge filed by the NDLEA, Ogbonnaya Kevin Jeff—who also goes by the aliases “Kingsley” and “Padok”—is alleged to be the head of a Drug Trafficking Organization (DTO) and is currently listed on INTERPOL’s Red Notice No. A-1419/2-2024.
According to the prosecution, Kevin and several accomplices—John Haze, Robert Jackson, Frank Carlos, Breeze Mankal Johan Stephane, Okori Emmanuel, and one Pieters Santa Elizabeth, a South African arrested at Terminal 1 of Incheon International Airport in South Korea—conspired to traffic 2 kilograms of methamphetamine, a controlled psychotropic substance.
Kevin was apprehended in February 2025 at No. 3 Ibukunoluwa Taiwo Street, Agric Estate, off LASU/Idimu Road, Isheri Olofin, Lagos State. The court has refused him bail and has instead ordered an accelerated hearing of the case.
Count 1: That on or about December 24, 2023, Kevin conspired with Pieters Santa Elizabeth to traffic 2kg of methamphetamine into South Korea—an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 14(b) of the NDLEA Act, Cap. N30, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
Count 2: That on or about April 23, 2024, Kevin conspired with Victor, John Haze, Robert Jackson, Frank Carlos, and Breeze Mankal Johan Stephane to import 2kg of methamphetamine from Mexico to South Korea—contrary to and punishable under Section 14(6) of the NDLEA Act.
Count 3: That on or about December 30, 2023, Kevin conspired with Asa and Okori Emmanuel to traffic another 2kg of methamphetamine into South Korea—an offence under Section 14(b) of the NDLEA Act.
Count 4: That sometime in 2023, Kevin conspired with Chisom (currently serving a sentence in South Korea) and Kelly (still at large) to distribute unspecified quantities of methamphetamine and Cannabis Sativa—both substances being classified alongside cocaine, LSD, and heroin. This too is in violation of Section 14(b) of the NDLEA Act.
Count 5: That on February 12, 2025, at his Lagos residence, Kevin was found in possession of 15 grams of Cannabis Sativa (popularly known as “loud”)—a narcotic substance—without lawful authority, thereby committing an offence contrary to Section 11(d) of the NDLEA Act.
Ogbonnaya Kevin Jeff, 59, was recently apprehended by operatives of the NDLEA at his hideout in the Ojo area of Lagos, bringing an end to his 17-year run from the law.
Announcing the arrest, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (retd.), disclosed that the agency’s Special Operations Unit had been tracking Jeff for years, acting on an INTERPOL Red Notice and intelligence shared by the National Intelligence Service of South Korea.
According to Marwa, investigators had gathered incontrovertible evidence linking Ogbonnaya to a transnational drug trafficking network. This included his role in recruiting young Nigerians as drug couriers to smuggle narcotics—particularly methamphetamine—into South Korea.
Jeff’s criminal history dates back to 2007, when he served a one-year prison sentence in South Korea for drug-related offences. He was subsequently deported to Nigeria in 2008, but instead of abandoning the trade, he resumed his illicit operations, coordinating drug shipments to various destinations in the Far East.
