THE National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, says its operatives have intercepted consignments of skunk concealed in tins of tomato paste and methamphetamine hidden in used clothes meant for export to Dubai, the United Arab Emirates.
According to NDLEA, the skunk in tomato paste consignment weighing 20 kilograms was intercepted on Friday at the SAHCO export shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, MMIA Ikeja, while the meth shipment with a gross weight of 1.60kg was seized at a courier company in Lagos.
This was disclosed in a statement issued on Sunday by the NDLEA’s Director of Media & Advocacy, Femi Babafemi.
The anti-narcotic agency also announced that another consignment of 556 grams of Canadian loud sent from Canada to one Tunji Adebayo in Ikorodu, Lagos, was also intercepted by its officers at the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation, DOGI, attached to courier firms.
Similarly, NDLEA operatives on Monday raided the enclave of an alleged notorious drug lord in Akala, Mushin, Lagos, Abdul Rauf (aka ‘Na God), where 1,101kgs of Ghanaian loud were recovered and three suspects arrested while the wanted kingpin remains at large.
In Kogi, the agency disclosed that a 22-year-old Agada Emmanuel was arrested with 77.400kgs cannabis on Thursday 7th September along the Okene-Lokoja-Abuja expressway, adding that a total of 369,980 pills of opioids were also recovered on the same road on Monday 4th September.
The statement said the suspect linked to the seizure, Kabiru Ahmad Abdullahi, was arrested in a follow-up operation in Gombe State.
Meanwhile, no fewer than 399 pieces of improvised explosive devices were claimed to have been recovered by NDLEA operatives from one Asana Oluwagbenga Leke, 39, along Mokwa-Jebba road on Thursday 7th September.
According to NDLEA, the suspect said the explosives were handed to him at a park in Ibadan to be delivered to someone in Kaduna, adding that the suspect and exhibits have since been transferred to the military authorities in Niger State.
In Ogun State, the anti-narcotic agency stated that a follow-up operation led to the arrest of Yinka Azeez at Sabo Lafenwa, Abeokuta on Tuesday 5th September, following the seizure of 41kg cannabis from Titilayo Adetayo at Sagamu Interchange the previous day, leading to the arrest of two suspects: Muhammad Aliyu, 38, and Abdullahi Zakariya, 40, who were arrested in Zaria-Kano Road and Haye Arewa, Hotoro, Kano, respectively, with over 426.5 kilograms of skunk seized from them.
The agency also stated that one Onyeka Uzor, 25, was arrested at Idemili, Anambra State, with 64.8kgs skunk and tramadol, while another suspect, Destiny Irabor, was nabbed on Friday 8th September with over 180kgs of opioids loaded in his Toyota Sienna bus.
“In Kaduna, two suspects, Ahmed Yusuf and Rilwan Nura, were arrested on Wednesday 6th September in connection with the seizure of 100 blocks of cannabis weighing 55kgs along Abuja road.
“In Edo State, operatives stormed the Ekudo forest, Onwude LGA, where they destroyed cannabis farms measuring 4.236347 hectares. In the same vein, operatives on Thursday 7th September raided the house of one Amuodu Egwehide, 40, in Iloje Okpuje, Owan West LGA, where they recovered 22 bags of skunk weighing 261.4kgs, while a 60-year-old grandma, Mrs. Eunice Egwehide was arrested in the town same day with 17kgs of the same substance seized from her.
“A suspect, Gapchiya Modu, 26, was arrested with 60kgs of cannabis along Kano-Nguru Road, Nguru, Yobe state, while in Imo state, 200 blocks of the same substance weighing 57kgs were recovered from Usim Orji, 45, along Aba-Owerri road on Wednesday 6th September.
“After over two months of surveillance, NDLEA operatives on Wednesday 6th September arrested a wanted kingpin, Idoko Festus Ifesinachi, 40, linked to the importation of 76.9kgs Canadian Loud intercepted in a container marked MSDU6686346 at the Port Harcourt Ports Complex, Onne, Rivers state on 2nd June. He was arrested at his hideout in Lagos and taken to Port Harcourt,” the statement added.
However, NDLEA said that besides the various drug control efforts, the state commands and its formations had continued the Agency’s War Against Drug Abuse, WADA, advocacy campaigns to schools, worship places, palaces and local communities among others.
While commending the officers and men of the MMIA, Ogun, Lagos, Kano, Kaduna, Kogi, Anambra, Niger, Edo, Yobe, and Imo commands of the Agency as well as those of DOGI, for their balanced efforts in drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction activities, Chairman/Chief Executive of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd) urged them and their compatriots across the country to keep up the good work
