Drug Lords’ Assets Must Be Seized — Marwa Declares

ValidViewNetwork can report that the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (rtd.), has declared that arrests alone cannot defeat drug trafficking without a corresponding effort to seize and recover the proceeds of crime.

Marwa made the declaration while delivering a presentation titled, “Criminal Property and the Criminal Process: How Can We Make It More Effective?” at the 43rd Cambridge International Symposium on Economic Crime, hosted by the Centre for Geopolitics at the University of Cambridge, United Kingdom.

“Pruning a Weed”

ValidViewNetwork has learned that Marwa likened arresting a drug trafficker without confiscating his assets to “cutting a weed at the stem while leaving its roots intact,” warning that illicit wealth could resurface under different names, front companies or jurisdictions.

“A trafficker who loses his liberty but retains his fortune has not truly been defeated. His wealth can finance another operation, support his associates and sustain the criminal enterprise,” Marwa said.

Six Strategies Outlined

ValidViewNetwork can confirm that Marwa outlined six strategies adopted by the NDLEA to strengthen asset recovery, anchored on the NDLEA Act 2004, the Proceeds of Crime (Recovery and Management) Act 2022 and the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022.

Successes Cited

ValidViewNetwork has learned that Marwa cited the forfeiture of Hook Hotel, a property linked to a fugitive drug suspect, as an example of the agency’s use of non-conviction-based forfeiture.

The property was sold for $4.2 million, with the proceeds paid into the Federal Government’s forfeited assets account. ValidViewNetwork understands that the agency, just last month, froze bank accounts containing more than $7 million and secured interim forfeiture orders covering multibillion-naira assets, including filling stations, buildings and vehicles allegedly linked to a methamphetamine syndicate.

What This Means

ValidViewNetwork understands that Marwa identified three principles guiding the agency’s asset recovery efforts; speed over sequence, preservation of value and institutionalisation.

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He acknowledged challenges, including delays in mutual legal assistance and limited capacity for forensic accounting, while calling for faster international cooperation and broader recognition of non-conviction-based forfeiture across jurisdictions.