Aderinoye Queen Christmas, also known as Queen Oluwadamilola Aderinoye, a former beauty queen who had been declared wanted by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), has surrendered to the Lagos State Command after evading capture for nearly eight months. NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi confirmed in a statement on Sunday, September 1, 2024, that Aderinoye turned herself in on Wednesday, August 28.
Aderinoye, who was crowned Miss Commonwealth Nigeria Culture 2015/2016 and is the founder of the Queen Christmas Foundation, went into hiding after a raid on her Lekki residence in Lagos in January 2024. The raid was conducted based on intelligence reports linking her to illicit drug activities. During the operation, NDLEA officials discovered 606 grams of Canadian Loud (a synthetic strain of cannabis), an electronic weighing scale, drug packaging materials, and a black RAV 4 SUV with Lagos license plates. Aderinoye had been hiding in Akure, Ondo State, since the raid.
In related developments, NDLEA operatives recently seized 1,122 kilograms of cannabis from a suspect named Mustapha Ibrahim along Orchid Road in Ajah, Lagos State. Additionally, 816 kilograms of cannabis were recovered from the same location, belonging to another suspect who remains at large.
Brig.-Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, commended the agency’s officers for their vigilance and professionalism in these operations, praising their ongoing efforts to reduce both drug demand and supply across the country.
