ENUGU, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has recorded one of its biggest drug seizures this year, intercepting a 40-foot container carrying 4,959 kilograms of Canadian Loud cannabis worth an estimated N12.397 billion at the Apapa Port in Lagos, while also dismantling a criminal syndicate that allegedly plants illicit drugs in the luggage of unsuspecting interstate passengers.
The massive seizure followed more than four weeks of intelligence-driven surveillance and was made on Wednesday, June 23, during a joint examination conducted by operatives of the NDLEA Apapa Strategic Command alongside officers of the Nigeria Customs Service, other security agencies and port stakeholders.
According to the agency, the container, which also concealed a Ford and a Nissan vehicle, had been under surveillance since April 25 after departing Toronto, Canada.
Investigations revealed that the shipment travelled by truck to Montreal before being transported by rail and routed through Tanger Med Port in Morocco, where it was loaded onto another vessel on May 23.
The consignment arrived at Tin Can Port, Lagos, on June 4, was discharged the following day and later moved to Apapa Port, where NDLEA operatives intercepted it.
In a separate operation, NDLEA operatives arrested a 38-year-old businesswoman, Iwebema Ogechi Peace, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos, while attempting to board a Qatar Airways flight to Beijing, China, with 7.5 kilograms of cocaine concealed inside the false bottom of her suitcase.
The suspect, who told investigators that she regularly travelled to China to purchase goods for resale in Nigeria, was arrested at the departure hall of Terminal 2 following credible intelligence.
READ ALSO NDLEA Arrests Three Disabled Drug Trafficking Suspects
A thorough search of her luggage led to the discovery of four parcels of cocaine professionally hidden inside a specially constructed false compartment.
The agency also uncovered a criminal network allegedly involved in planting illicit drugs inside the luggage of unsuspecting passengers travelling on interstate buses.
The investigation began after NDLEA operatives in Abuja, working with colleagues in Anambra State, intercepted a Sienna bus travelling from Nnewi at Abaji in the Federal Capital Territory on June 20.
A search of the vehicle uncovered a waybill package containing 467.7 grams of methamphetamine hidden inside a black nylon bag placed within a sack of clothes bearing the receiver’s phone number.
Operatives subsequently arrested the intended recipient, Mrs Gloria Peter, at Utako Motor Park. However, she denied ownership or any knowledge of the illicit package.
Further investigations led to the arrest of bus loaders in Nnewi, where one suspect confessed to placing the drugs inside the woman’s luggage on the instruction of the vehicle’s driver, Abdurrazak Isah.
The driver later identified one of his passengers, Onyebuchi Victor Okoye, as the owner of the illicit consignment, leading to Okoye’s arrest in Abuja.
In another operation, operatives of the NDLEA Special Operations Unit arrested 57-year-old Ikechukwu Uwakwe at a motor park in Iddo, Lagos, with 209.5 kilograms of Scottish Loud, another potent strain of cannabis, concealed inside a consignment destined for Enugu State.
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 their truck on the Mile 2 Bridge in Lagos.
According to the agency, the suspects were transporting illicit drugs from Togo through the Benin Republic into Nigeria when the vehicle was stopped.
A search of the truck uncovered 558,900 pills of Tramadol 250mg hidden inside a specially fabricated compartment.
Similarly, NDLEA operatives arrested Lucky Abonga and Osas Azamobo along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway while transporting 118 kilograms of skunk concealed among legitimate goods in a truck travelling from Ebute Ero, Lagos Island, to Onitsha, Anambra State.
In another raid in Lagos, operatives arrested Helen Ese Idiji, 40, and Rashidat Sa’adullah, 53, at No. 15 Olumokun Street, Amukoko, recovering 28.8 kilograms of skunk from the suspects.
READ ONLY: NDLEA Arrests Three Disabled Drug Trafficking Suspects
Investigations showed that Helen allegedly stored her drug consignments with Rashidat before distributing them to customers.
Beyond enforcement operations, NDLEA commands across the country sustained the agency’s War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) advocacy campaign in schools, worship centres, workplaces and communities.
The sensitisation programme reached Government Girls Science Secondary School, Damaturu, Yobe State; Adesalu Primary School, Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos; Government Girls Secondary School, Badawa, Kano State; School of Science and Islamic Studies, Ankpa, Kogi State; and Community Secondary School, Ezimo, Udenu Local Government Area of Enugu State, among other institutions.
Commending the successful operations, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brigadier-General Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd), praised officers and men of the MMIA, Special Operations Unit, Apapa, FCT, Anambra and Lagos Commands for the arrests and seizures.
Marwa also applauded the commands for maintaining a balance between aggressive drug supply reduction operations and sustained anti-drug abuse awareness campaigns, urging them to remain resolute in the agency’s ongoing battle against illicit drug trafficking and substance abuse nationwide.