From Abuja To Beijing: How Nigeria Helped Hunt Down China’s Most Wanted Gang Boss

In a dramatic cross-border operation, the Nigeria Police Force has repatriated Dai Qisheng, a notorious Chinese gang leader, marking one of the most high-profile fugitive captures in recent years.

Qisheng, long wanted in Guizhou Province, China, for masterminding violent organized crimes, fled his homeland in 2024 after authorities in Zhijin County issued a warrant for his arrest. His attempt to evade justice ended in Abuja, where operatives of the INTERPOL National Central Bureau (NCB) Nigeria tracked, surveilled, and captured him on August 8, 2025.

In a statement released by Force spokesperson, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, the police confirmed that Qisheng was repatriated to Beijing on August 15 under a tightly coordinated INTERPOL-led operation involving NCB Abuja, NCB Beijing, and the Embassy of China in Nigeria.

“This decisive action underscores the Force’s unyielding commitment to the fight against transnational organized crime,” the statement read. “It also reflects the power of international cooperation in dismantling global criminal networks.”

The Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, praised the feat as a testament to Nigeria’s determination to ensure its borders are never a safe haven for international fugitives. He emphasized that the operation sends a strong message to criminal syndicates worldwide: Nigeria will not be a hiding place.

Civil society experts hailed the move as not only a diplomatic win for Nigeria but also a warning to global criminals who view Africa as a potential sanctuary.

For Qisheng, however, the failed bid to outwit justice now lands him in the very hands he once fled—his fate sealed by an alliance of nations refusing to let borders shield crime.