NDLEA busts drug syndicate, seizes ₦12.3bn Canadian cannabis at Lagos port

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The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has intercepted 4,959 kilograms of Canadian Loud cannabis valued at N12.397bn at the Apapa Port in Lagos and dismantled a syndicate that plants illicit drugs in the luggage of unsuspecting passengers at motor parks.

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The agency also arrested a businesswoman at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, with 7.5 kilograms of cocaine concealed in the false bottom of her luggage while she was travelling to Beijing, China.

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NDLEA disclosed the arrests and seizures in a statement released on Sunday by its Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi.

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According to the agency, 38-year-old Iwebema Ogechi Peace was arrested at the departure hall of Terminal 2 of the Lagos airport on June 21 following credible intelligence.

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The statement said, “A search of her check-in luggage led to the discovery of four large parcels of cocaine concealed in false bottom professionally created in her bag. The parcels of the Class A drug found hidden in the bag have a combined weight of 7.5 kilograms.”

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The agency said operatives had tracked the container carrying the Canadian Loud shipment for over four weeks before intercepting it during a joint examination with officers of the Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies at the Apapa Port on June 23.

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It stated, “A total of 4,959 kilograms of the illicit drug consignment worth N12,397,500,000 in street value was recovered.”

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NDLEA said the 40-foot container, which also contained a Ford and Nissan vehicle, had been under surveillance since April 25, when it departed Toronto, Canada, before passing through Montreal and Morocco and eventually arriving in Lagos.

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The agency also announced the dismantling of a drug syndicate that secretly plants narcotics in the luggage of unsuspecting passengers travelling by road.

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The operation followed the interception of a Sienna bus travelling from Nnewi, Anambra State, to Abuja, where operatives recovered a package of methamphetamine weighing 467.7 grams concealed inside a passenger’s luggage.

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According to the statement, the supposed receiver of the package, Gloria Peter, denied ownership of the drugs, prompting investigators to arrest the bus loaders in Nnewi.

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“The loaders revealed that the drug package was put into the woman’s bag by one of them on the directive of the driver of the bus, Abdurrazak Isah.

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“His revelations made the driver open up and mention one of his passengers, Onyebuchi Victor Okoye, as the actual owner of the drug. Onyebuchi was then picked up at Utako, FCT, during another follow-up operation,” the statement said.

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In another operation, NDLEA operatives arrested 57-year-old Ikechukwu Uwakwe at Iddo Motor Park in Lagos with 209.5 kilograms of Scottish Loud cannabis allegedly being transported to Enugu.

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The agency also arrested two nationals of the Benin Republic, Hossou Tito Julien, 30, and Mancellim Dossou, 19, alongside a Nigerian, Jackson ThankGod, after intercepting a truck conveying illicit drugs from Togo through the Benin Republic.

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“A thorough search of the truck led to the recovery of 558,900 pills of Tramadol 250mg concealed in a fabricated compartment of the vehicle,” the statement said.

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Similarly, two suspects, Lucky Abonga and Osas Azamobo, were arrested along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway while transporting 118 kilograms of skunk concealed among legitimate goods in a truck heading to Onitsha, Anambra State.

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In Amukoko, Lagos, NDLEA operatives arrested Helen Ese Idiji, 40, and Rashidat Sa’adullah, 53, with 28.8 kilograms of skunk.

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The agency said investigations revealed that Helen used Rashidat’s residence as a storage point for illicit drugs before distributing them to customers.

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Commending the officers involved in the operations, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (retd.), praised the commands for sustaining the agency’s offensive against drug trafficking.

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Marwa said the officers had maintained “their drug supply reduction efforts balanced with WADA sensitisation activities,” and urged them “not to rest on their oars.”

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