By The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) is mourning the death of its Cross River State Commander, Chief Narcotics Officer Ogbonna Uzoma, who was found dead in his hotel room in Calabar on Thursday.
NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, confirmed the incident in a statement on Friday. He said Uzoma, who assumed office on August 18, 2025, was due to lead his officers on scheduled operations at 10 a.m. but failed to report.
“By 9 a.m., when his officers didn’t hear from him, they went to his hotel room in company of the hotel staff while several knocks at his door and calls to his telephone line went unanswered,” Babafemi explained.
According to him, attempts to force the door open were unsuccessful until a hotel attendant entered the room through the ceiling and discovered the commander’s lifeless body.
The Cross River State Police Command was immediately alerted. The Commissioner of Police personally visited the scene, while investigations into the cause of death are ongoing.
NDLEA Chairman, Brigadier General Buba Marwa (retd.), has directed the Zonal Commander, ACGN Mathew Ewah, to relocate to Calabar to support the police inquiry.
“The Chairman/Chief Executive has since directed the Zonal Commander to move to Cross River to assist police investigation,” Babafemi noted.
Marwa also commiserated with Uzoma’s family, describing his passing as a painful loss. “The Agency stands with the family in this trying moment, and we pray that God will comfort them and grant the departed eternal rest,” he said.
Though his tenure in Cross River was short, Uzoma was reported to have been active and engaged immediately after taking over the Command.
Cross River has in recent years become a focus of NDLEA operations. In June 2025, the agency destroyed a 30-hectare cannabis farm in the state and reported several large seizures of illicit drugs.
