ENUGU, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested two suspected drug kingpins at Port Harcourt International Airport and Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.
The suspects reportedly excreted a total of 125 wraps of heroin after being placed under observation.
NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, confirmed the arrests in a statement issued on Sunday, revealing that one of the suspects, Onyekwonike Elochuckwu Sylvanus, used dual identities to evade detection.
According to Babafemi, Sylvanus, 30, was apprehended at Port Harcourt airport on February 2, 2025, while attempting to enter the country using a Sierra Leonean passport under the name Kargbo Mohamed Foday.
“He was intercepted during the inward clearance of passengers on a Qatar Airways flight from Doha via Abuja.
“A body scan confirmed he had ingested illicit drugs, and under observation, he excreted 62 wraps of heroin weighing 1.348 kilograms in five sessions,” Babafemi stated.
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Further investigations revealed that Sylvanus frequently switched between his Nigerian and Sierra Leonean passports while trafficking drugs across Thailand, Pakistan, Iran, and West Africa.
He reportedly confessed to joining the drug trade in 2017 after his clothing and shoe business collapsed.
The second suspect, James Chinoso, 48, was arrested at Lagos airport on February 1, 2025, upon his return from Madagascar via Ethiopia on an Ethiopian Airlines flight.
“A body scan confirmed he had illicit drugs in his system. Under observation, he excreted 63 wraps of heroin weighing 909 grams,” Babafemi disclosed.
Chinoso allegedly left Lagos for Madagascar on January 26, 2025, and returned a week later.
“He claimed he turned to drug trafficking after his phone accessories business in Liberia collapsed,” Babafemi added.
In a separate operation on February 6, NDLEA operatives from the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation intercepted 2.82 kilograms of Loud (a potent strain of synthetic cannabis) smuggled from the United States and destined for Lagos.
That same day, another logistics firm in Lagos was discovered to be shipping 80 ampoules of pentazocine injection (225 grams) concealed in cartons to Canada.
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In Kano, on February 3, NDLEA operatives arrested Usaini Salisu and Yahaya Mu’azu, both 23, at Gadar Tamburawa along Zaria Road, recovering 15,396 tramadol pills hidden inside a gas cylinder.
A separate raid in Sabon Gari, Kano, led to the arrest of Chioma Okeke, 35, who was found in possession of 27 blocks of skunk (15 kilograms of cannabis).
On February 8, NDLEA officers intercepted 12,800 tramadol 250mg pills along the Kabba-Obajana Highway in Kogi State, arresting Salisu Basiru, 33.
The same day, 65 parcels of Colorado (1.6 kilograms of synthetic cannabis) destined for Jigawa State were seized from Rufai Hassan, 32, at a checkpoint.
The NDLEA, in its statement, reaffirmed its commitment to intensifying operations against drug syndicates and traffickers across the country.