The alleged head of an international drug trafficking network has been arrested in Lagos following a five-year joint investigation between Korean and Nigerian authorities, Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) announced on Thursday.
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The suspect, identified only as K. Jeff, 59, was apprehended on February 13 by Nigerian authorities. He is accused of running a sophisticated drug trafficking operation that spanned five continents and allegedly used deceptive tactics to recruit drug mules, including Korean citizens.
The arrest comes after extensive collaboration between the NIS Transnational Crime Information Centre and Nigeria’s National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), resulting in the capture of 37 cartel members.
Jeff was previously convicted in Korea in 2007 for drug smuggling and served a 12-month prison sentence before being deported to Nigeria in 2008. According to investigators, he subsequently expanded his operations across Southeast Asia, Europe, Africa, and the Americas.
The organization allegedly employed various deceptive methods to smuggle drugs, including romance scams where victims were manipulated through fake online relationships. In one case, a Korean woman in her 50s was caught attempting to transport cocaine concealed in depilatory wax products to Cambodia. Approximately 10 Korean citizens were reportedly deceived into acting as drug mules.
The investigation began in 2020 when Korean authorities, including the prosecution, customs service, and police, started tracking the cartel. In 2021, they identified cartel members in Korea attempting to smuggle drugs from Ghana.
The breakthrough came after Korean investigators shared crucial intelligence with Nigerian authorities and dispatched a team to West Africa to locate the cartel’s headquarters.
The NIS warned that drug organisations are increasingly targeting Korea and other Asian countries as North American authorities intensify their anti-drug efforts. The agency has pledged to continue strengthening international cooperation to protect Korean citizens from drug trafficking operations.
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