Calabar: NDLEA commander found dead in hotel room

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in Cross River State has been thrown into mourning following the sudden death of its commander, Mr. Morrison Ogbonna.

Ogbonna’s lifeless body was discovered on Thursday morning, September 18, 2025, inside a hotel room in Calabar, where he had lodged.

According to sources, officers had gone to pick him up for an official engagement but became alarmed after repeated knocks on his door went unanswered. The hotel management was alerted, and when the door was eventually opened, Ogbonna was found dead.

Ogbonna, who assumed duty in Cross River last month following the redeployment of Mrs. Rachel Umebuali, had only recently taken charge of the command.

Confirming the development, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in Cross River, SP Irene Ugbo-Obase, said: “I can confirm to you that it is true, but what led to the death is what I can’t readily tell you.”

His sudden death comes amid rising concerns over safety in Calabar, where several bodies have been discovered in recent weeks. They include a headless teenager behind the Cross River Basin Authority in Ikot Effanga Mkpa, an unidentified corpse at the entrance of the NYSC Secretariat along Murtala Mohammed Highway, and another body found at Marian.