National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) says it has intercepted six million pills of opioids namely: tamol 225mg, tapentadol 225mg and carisoprodol 225mg as well as 332,000 bottles of codeine-based cough syrup worth N6.524 billion at the Port Harcourt Ports, Onne, Rivers and Apapa Seaport, Lagos.
Director, Media and Advocacy, NDLEA Headquarters Abuja, Femi Babafemi, who made this known in a statement yesterday, said the seizures followed intelligence and tracking of new trafficking routes to ship illicit substances into Nigeria by drug cartels, which necessitated the watch-listing of the containers for 100 per cent examination.
Babafemi said the consignments at the Port Harcourt ports: six million pills of opioids and 162,000 bottles of codeine syrup were uncovered in two containers last Monday and Tuesday during an examination of the shipments by NDLEA officers with men of the Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies.
He said at the Apapa port in Lagos, a total of 170,000 bottles of codeine syrup were discovered in a watch-listed container by their operatives during a similar exercise last Thursday.
Babafemi also said two Britons: Mhizha Jordan Alexander Tatenda and Ayedipe Andrew Adejuwon as well as two Nigerians: Shonowo Oluwaseun Imole and Ofuoma Omokaro Ayobami have been arrested by the agency operatives for attempting to smuggle into Nigeria 92 bags of Loud, a strong strain of cannabis weighing 51.10kg through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja Lagos.
According to the statement, Alexander was nabbed with the consignment upon his arrival at the MMIA on a Qatar Airline flight from Doha based on processed intelligence on May 15. Alexander was allowed to pass through the security control and monitored by the operatives to the car park, where the owner of the cargo, Ayedipe Andrew Adejuwon, a Nigerian-Briton, was waiting in an SUV along with his relative Imole and driver of the vehicle, Ayobami, to receive the courier.
The NDLEA operatives swooped on them as they attempted to drive out, arresting them with the drug exhibits. Alexander confessed he was recruited during his vacation weeks ago while he was promised 1,300 British Pounds upon delivery of the consignment in Lagos. The arrowhead of the syndicate, Ayedipe Andrew Adejuwon, confessed that he arrived in Nigeria a day earlier from South Africa through Ghana.
A follow-up at their apartment in Lekki led to more discoveries. At the point of his arrest, N93,000 and 17,200 South African Rand were found in the apartment. In all, N3,810,500, an Apple laptop, an iPhone 14 Pro Max and four laughing gas (Nitro Oxide) canisters were recovered, Babafemi added.
The spokesman also said a total of 75,000 kilogrammes of skunk were destroyed on 30 hectares of cannabis farms by the operatives at Esuk-Odot village in Odukpani Local Government Area, Cross River State where 200kg of same substance was recovered last Wednesday, while 1,957.5kg of the same psychoactive plant was destroyed at Ohosu forest, Ovia South West Local Government Area and Okhuse community forest, Owan West Local Government Area, Edo State last Friday and Saturday.
“In Nasarawa State, two suspects: Sunday Daniel, 51, and Abu Peter, 30, were arrested at Keffi by NDLEA operatives on Saturday, May 24, when 4,000 kilogrammes of skunk were discovered concealed under unprocessed wood in their lorry, while another suspect, Godwin Obi, 39, was nabbed at Karu with 154.5kg of same substance on Wednesday, May 21.
“In Kaduna, NDLEA operatives on patrol on the Kaduna-Zaria Expressway at Gwargwaje on Wednesday 21st May, intercepted 22-year-old Muhammad Hamza with 57,750 pills of tramadol and diazepam, while same day their counterparts in Bauchi arrested Usman Muhammad, 45, along Bauchi-Misau road with 80 blocks of skunk weighing 45kg.
Similarly, operatives on stop-and-search operations along Potiskum–Damaturu road, Yobe state intercepted 55 parcels of Colorado, weighing 2kg, which a suspect Adum Muhammed, 29, was attempting to smuggle into the Republic of Chad through Ngamboru Ngala border town in Borno State.
“In Niger State, NDLEA operatives on patrol on the Mokwa-Jebba Road on Thursday, May 22 intercepted a Mercedes Benz car marked FST 938 FU loaded with 235 blocks of compressed cannabis sativa weighing 97kg and arrested a suspect, Adams Ayibakro. This is even as operatives in Lagos raided the Osapa London, Lekki where they arrested a suspect, Jonathan Isa, with quantities of Cocaine, Methamphetamine, Molly, Rohypnol, Codeine, Cannabis and Nitrous Oxide while another raid at Idasun, Eleko, Ibeju Lekki on Saturday, May 24 led to the arrest of Olamilekan Idowu and seizure of 48kg skunk,’’ he added.
Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig.-Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd) praised their officers across the country for ensuring a fair balance between their drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction.