The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency in Nigeria (NDLEA), has carried out successful interdiction operations in eight states, resulting in the arrest of 24 drug traffickers and dealers.
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The bulk of the seizures were made in Nasarawa state where NDLEA operatives acting on credible intelligence on Sunday 4th February, intercepted a truck marked Lagos JJJ 64 YC conveying 367 jumbo bags of cannabis sativa weighing 4,037 kilograms from Akure, Ondo state to be delivered at Shabu area of Lafia, the state capital.
Three suspects: Shuaibu Yahaya Liman, 35; Monday Audu, 33, and Linus Samuel, 42 have been arrested in connection with the seizure.
Among the suspects were a 42-year-old man caught smuggling thousands of concealed opioid pills to an insurgent’s enclave in Banki, a six-month-pregnant woman, a mother of three, and three other women. The operations also led to the seizure of over 7,609 kilograms of various illicit drugs.
Operatives in Abuja, “FCT arrested the duo of Jibrin Shuaibu, 23, and Prosper Innih, 17, with 169 bags and 80 blocks of compressed cannabis sativa weighing 1,961.5kgs concealed in a truck with registration number Ogun WDE 557 XC. The truck was intercepted during a stop and search operation along the Abaji – Abuja highway on their way from Uzeba to Dei-Dei, FCT.”
In another operation by NDLEA operatives in Abuja, a suspect, Abdulhameed Dauda, 27, was arrested with 89kgs of the same psychoactive substance loaded into his truck in Owo, Ondo state to be delivered in FCT.
On the same day, operatives also intercepted another driver, Hassan Ade, 30, transporting 696.5kgs of the same substance loaded in Idoani, Ondo state to be delivered at Gwagwalada and Dei-Dei in FCT. A follow-up operation led to the arrest of a mother of three children, Mrs. Joy Chukwuka, 42, linked with the consignment.
In Ondo state, apart from the seizure of 633.5kgs of cannabis at Eleyere, Ogbese in Akure North LGA, NDLEA operatives also recovered 59 jumbo bags of the same substance loaded in a truck marked GAD 287 XA heading to the Northern part of the country. Detergents were sprayed on the cannabis bags ostensibly to suppress the odour of the psychoactive weed, while 192 packs of table water were loaded on top to conceal the illicit consignment.
“Not less than 187kgs of the same substance were seized by operatives at Sapele road, Benin, Edo state while in Kano.”
NDLEA officers arrested 58-year-old Bashir Attahir in the Bachirawa area of the state with 216,000 pills of tramadol 250mg. Another suspect, Ejike Moses Nmenme, 47, was nabbed with 25,190 capsules of tramadol and different quantities of Rohypnol and codeine syrup along Emir Road, Sabon Gari area of the city while the duo of Yusuf Abdullahi Musa, 35, and Yusuf Musa, 28, were nabbed at Gadar Tamburawa, with 1,000 ampoules of tramadol injection.
In Borno state, a 42-year-old suspected supplier of illicit drugs to insurgents in Banki, a border region between Nigeria and Cameroon, Ahmad Mohammed was arrested by NDLEA operatives on Friday 9th February at Bama checkpoint.
When his luggage was searched 20,000 capsules of tramadol were recovered from him while on his way to deliver the opioid consignment in the border town.
A six-month pregnant woman, Amarachi Akaolisa, 25, and another lady, Ifeoma Iheanyi, 21, were among six suspects arrested for dealing in illicit substances in Oraifite and Umuni-Evili, Aguleri, Anambra state. Others nabbed include Okwuchukwu Chukwuka; Onyedika Ngwu; Ekene Hyginus and Nzomiwu Ikechukwu. Recovered from them were over 6 kilograms of cannabis, tramadol, diazepam, and codeine syrup in raids conducted by NDLEA operatives in parts of the state.
In Lagos, two ladies: Boluwatife Adebayo and Omolade Fola Adebayo were among the suspects arrested during raids in parts of the state. While Ogah Sunday Adole and Boluwatife Adebayo were arrested at Agidingbi, Ikeja, in connection with 220grams of cannabis, 10.6 litres of codeine syrup, and other psychotropic substances,
“Omolade Fola Adebayo was nabbed at Ijesha with various quantities of cannabis, codeine syrup, Rohypnol, and molly.”
The Commands across the country balanced their drug supply reduction operations with the War Against Drug Abuse, WADA, advocacy campaigns in schools, markets, worship centres, and communities.
While commending the efforts of the Nasarawa, FCT, Ondo, Kano, Borno, Edo, Anambra, and Lagos Commands of the Agency for jobs well done in the past week, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd) urged them and their compatriots across the country to always strive to surpass past feats in their drug supply and drug demand reduction efforts.
