THE National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has seized 126.95 kilogrammes of cocaine and skunk at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport (AIIA), Enugu, and the Tincan seaport in Lagos.
The NDLEA said the drugs were concealed in herbal tea packs and imported vehicles by drug cartels from Brazil and Canada.
According to a statement by the spokesperson of the NDLEA, Femi Babafemi, at the Enugu airport, an Ethiopian Airline male passenger, Eze Christian Ikenna, 42, coming from Brazil via Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, was intercepted on arrival at the airport at about 12:30pm on Friday, January 20.
Photo credit: NDLEA
“A search of his two bags revealed 19 big sachets, which he claimed to contain herbal tea but were later found to be cocaine weighing 16.20 kilograms.
“In the same vein, a joint examination carried out on a container marked TCLU 7799237 from Montreal, Canada, at Sifax Okota Bonded Terminal by NDLEA operatives attached to the Tincan Command of the Agency on Wednesday 18th January led to the discovery of 110.75kgs of cannabis indica concealed in two of the four vehicles in the container,” Babafemi said.
The statement added that deliberate efforts by the agency to cut access to illicit opioids paid off on Tuesday when a consignment of tramadol that NDLEA operatives had been tracking for some months was eventually traced to a warehouse at Greenfield Estate, Amuwo Odofin area of Lagos.
It read, “When the store was opened, a total of 1,645,560 pills of Tramadol 100mg, 200mg and 225mg were recovered.
“Another 60,000 pills of Tramadol 250mg were equally recovered from a wanted drug dealer, Diugwu Alphonsus, in the Bariga area of the same state day, while raids carried out in the Akala area of Mushin on Wednesday 18th and Friday 20th January led to the recovery of 781.7kgs of cannabis.”
The agency said its operatives in Osun State, on Friday, January 20, took into custody a blind 67-year-old grandfather, Aliyu Adebiyi, in whose house they found 234kg of cannabis at Sokoto village, Owena Ijesa, Atakumosa East LGA.
Photo credit: NDLEA
“In his statement, he said a drug dealer kept the consignment with him for a fee of N6,000 per month and paid for three months upfront,” NDLEA added.
Similarly, a leper, Haruna Abdullahi, 45, alleged to be notorious for drug dealing, was arrested at Garko town, Kano, on Thursday, January 19, while 2.2kgs of cannabis and various quantities of Diazepam and Exol were recovered from him.
A reporter with the ICIR
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