By Olawale Lamina
Officers of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, have confiscated consignments comprising cocaine and pharmaceutical opioids covered in ladies’ sanitary pads and hair treatment cream containers intended to be delivered to the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Cyprus through three separate courier companies in Lagos State.
A statement on Sunday by the agency’s Spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, informed that in one of the courier companies, not less than 30 parcels of cocaine weighing 1.1 kilograms hidden in hair cream containers were recovered by NDLEA operatives during the examination of cargoes going to Ireland on September 3, 2024.
The statement reads in part: “Another consignment of 24 parcels of cocaine weighing 862 grams also hidden in hair cream containers meant for delivery in the UK was equally intercepted at the same company on September 6.
“In the same vein, a total of 525 pills of tramadol 225mg and ecstasy (MDMA) concealed in ladies’ sanitary pads going to Cyprus were seized at another courier firm in Lagos by NDLEA operatives on September 3 while a shipment of 200 ampoules of promethazine injection and pentazocine injection hidden in food items and herbs heading to London, UK, was also seized by operatives on Wednesday September 4.”
The NDLEA spokesperson also said that operatives of the agency intercepted another consignment of tramadol 225mg buried in granulated melon that came from Cameroon and going to South Africa on September 6.
Similarly, at the Port Harcourt International Airport, ( in Rivers State ), Babafemi said no fewer than 550,000 pills of tramadol were seized on September 2 during a joint examination of a cargo that came from Delhi, India, with men of the Nigerian Customs Service adding that this resulted in the arrest of a dupe Ted in connection with the seizure.
In Ekiti state, the NDLEA spokesperson stated that operatives in a joint operation with men of the Nigerian Army, on September 3, stormed three camps inside the Ise-Ekiti forest reserve, in the Ise/Orun local government area where over 100,000 kilograms of cannabis spread across 51 hectares of farmland were destroyed.
Babafemi said: “The affected settlements include Aba Saalaja with 23 hectares; Aba Paanu with 12 hectares, and Aba Arogunmatidi with 16 hectares, all within the Ise-Ekiti forest reserve.”
He said that eight suspects were apprehended with different contraband drugs on September 6 in Kaduna State.
“Two suspects: Bala Musa, 42, and Danladi Muhammad, 44, were arrested on Friday 6th September along Toro-Jos road, Kaduna with 305kg cannabis concealed in a false compartment of a J5 boxer bus marked YLA 682 XM, while another suspect, Aminu Ayuba, 24 was arrested in possession of 18 kilograms of same substance at Makarfi town.
“Two others: Umar Usman, 40, and Zubairu Kabiru, 45, were arrested along Zaria- Kaduna highway in possession of 1300 tablets of tramadol, all same day,” said the spokesperson.
Babafemi added that similar arrests were carried out in Jigawa and Kogi states.
Babafemi explained further that, “In Jigawa State, Uzairu Ya’u, 30, was nabbed with 32.6kg of cannabis on Thursday 5th September at Koran Shehu, while operatives in Kogi on Wednesday 4th September intercepted 77,300 pills of tramadol, diazepam, and exol-5 as well as 1,230 bottles of codeine in a commercial bus driven by one Attai Okolo, 68, along Aloma – Ejule road, Ofu LGA, Kogi state. Another suspect, Mohammed Idris, 56, was nabbed along the Okene-Lokoja-Abuja expressway on Tuesday, 3rd September, with 42.400kg of cannabis coming from Lagos en route to Kano.“
“While NDLEA operatives in Borno state arrested Idris Muhammad, 40, at Ramat area of Maiduguri on Thursday 5th September with 13,100 pills of tramadol, their counterparts in Kano on Wednesday 4th September nabbed Hakilu Usman, 35, with 25.8kg cannabis and 3,000 pills of diazepam along Kano – Daura road.
“In Taraba, no fewer than 87,790 pills of tramadol were recovered from Musa Adamu, 30, when he was arrested in Zing, while in Osun state, a raid of the home of a drug kingpin, Mayowa Abayomi Awe (a.k.a Bishop) in Ilesa on Wednesday 4th September led to the seizure of 43 grams of crack cocaine, 23 grams of methamphetamine, 17.126kg cannabis and a locally made pistol.”
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