Fake drug dealer arrest ends months-long manhunt in Aba

Fake Drug Dealer Arrest in Aba: NAFDAC captures Lazarus Onwukwe after months on the run. He was caught sneaking out with a carload of expired drugs

Fake Drug Dealer Arrest operations by NAFDAC have culminated in the dramatic capture of Lazarus Onwukwe, the man dubbed the South-East’s biggest purveyor of counterfeit and expired drugs.

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His arrest in Aba early Thursday morning ended a months-long manhunt.

NAFDAC, backed by the Nigerian Army, Police, and DSS, stormed his Osisioma Ngwa residence just as Onwukwe attempted to flee in a Sienna van loaded with drugs. This joint operation was the result of tireless surveillance.

Back in February, Onwukwe had eluded arrest after a raid on his twin duplex yielded 14 truckloads of fake and expired pharmaceuticals. Though the property was sealed, he vanished—until now.

“He thought the government had forgotten him,” said Omoyeni Babatunji, NAFDAC’s Deputy Director of Investigation and Enforcement. “He was wrong.”

Now in custody, Onwukwe has admitted to owning the property used as storage but denied selling expired drugs, blaming a former apprentice. His wife and tenants claim ignorance.