Five years after a major Pangolinbust in Lagos State, South-West Nigeria, authorities have arrested a key suspect,
Shamsideen Abubakar who had been on the run.
The arrest of Abubakar marks a major breakthrough in Nigeria’s ongoing crackdown on illegal wildlife trade.
The suspect who was previously declared wanted by the Federal High Court in Lagos, has been arrested in a joint enforcement operation involving the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency, NESREA, the Nigeria Customs Service, NCS, and the Wildlife Justice Commission, WJC.
Abubakar had been on the run since September 2021 following a coordinated operation that led to the arrest of his associates, Sunday Ebenyi and Salif Sandwidi, in the Ikeja area of Lagos.
That operation also resulted in the seizure of over 1,009 kilogrammes of pangolin scales, one of the largest wildlife trafficking seizures recorded in the country.
Authorities say his arrest nearly two years after being officially declared wanted demonstrates the growing commitment of Nigerian law enforcement and international partners to pursue long-term investigations aimed at dismantling wildlife trafficking networks.
Reacting to the development, NESREA’s Director-General, Professor Innocent Barikor, reaffirmed the agency’s determination to ensure Nigeria does not become a safe haven for wildlife crime.
He noted that offenders will be pursued, arrested and prosecuted to the full extent of the law, stressing that every seizure, arrest and conviction will be pursued with unwavering commitment.
Barikor also attributed the breakthrough to intelligence sharing and strong collaboration among enforcement agencies, while urging members of the public to report suspicious activities.
“The success we have achieved today is the result of strategic partnership, intelligence sharing, and joint enforcement operation. We salute our partners and other sister agencies while we call on the public to report suspicious activities, and urge intending traffickers to desist because the era of impunity is over,” Professor Barikor added.
The arrest no doubt sends a strong signal to wildlife traffickers that Nigeria is intensifying efforts to disrupt criminal networks threatening biodiversity and violating national and international laws.
(Editor: Terverr Tyav)
