The Commander, Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) BEECROFT, Commodore Bashir Mohammed, on Thursday said that the navy intercepted 32.9kg of cocaine wrapped in 30 slabs aboard Motor Vessel (MV) Chayanee Naree on Wednesday.

Mohammed told newsmen in Lagos that the arrest of the vessel’s 22 crew members who were mostly from Thailand was made possible through collaborative efforts between the Nigerian Navy and the other law enforcement agencies.

He commended the efforts of the International Police (Interpol), the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS),  the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), and the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for their quest for a safer maritime environment.

“Acting on credible intelligence from Interpol, the Nigerian Navy commenced tracking of the vessel suspected of attempting to smuggle narcotics into Nigeria.

“Using the Nigerian Navy Falcon Eye Maritime Domain Awareness System, the Navy monitored the vessel and discovered that the vessel departed Brazil in September and arrived in Nigeria on Oct. 8.

“Upon entering  Nigerian waters, the vessel was intercepted by NNS EKULU and escorted to NPA where the vessel berthed and was taken into custody by the Nigerian Navy,” he said.

DCP Martin Nwogoh, Head, Interpol, Nigeria Police Annex, Lagos State,  said that the search of the motor vessel was still ongoing and that they were hoping to recover more narcotics.

Comptroller Ibrahim Yusuf, Comptroller, Apapa Area Command,  commended the synergy between the Nigerian Navy and the other security agencies that led to the success of the arrest.

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Mrs. Mercy Thompson, Commander of narcotics, NDLEA,  said that the intelligence was received by the agency from the UK Border Force and Interpol.

“We swung into action and the Nigerian Navy has been helpful in divulging information to our agency from the high sea,” Thompson said.