The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), yesterday said it has arrested a Chinese businessman and an 80-year-old grandma for drug trafficking.
A statement by Director, Media and Advocacy NDLEA, Mr Femi Babafemi yesterday in Abuja, said both suspects topped the list of arrests made by operatives of the NDLEA in nationwide interdiction operations.
This, he said, led to the seizure of consignments of Colorado, a synthetic strain of cannabis, hidden in moimoi sachets and Canadian Loud, another strong strain of cannabis, concealed in canned food items imported from Canada.
Babafemi said the Chinese suspect was arrested by NDLEA operatives at the arrival hall of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, (MMIA), Ikeja Lagos on July 25 based on actionable intelligence.
He said the suspect, who arrived Nigeria from Bangkok via Dubai, UAE, on Emirates Airline flight, was a Chinese national, naturalised and based in Malaysia.
He added that he flew to Thailand where he picked two suitcases filled with 50 parcels of Loud weighing 26.10kg before heading to Nigeria via UAE.
“Upon his arrival at the Lagos airport, NDLEA operatives who were tracking his movement from his port of departure allowed him to pass through necessary protocols before picking him up on his way out of the airport.
“The octogenarian grandma was arrested at Edet-Nsa street, Base Site, Calabar South, Cross River state with over 3kg skunk in the early hours of Saturday, July 26.
“This followed intelligence on her drug dealing activities,” he said.
In Lagos, NDLEA operatives on July 23 intercepted a suspect along Epe – Ajah expressway while taking consignments of 21.7kg Colorado.
Babafemi said some of the drugs were packaged in moimoi cooking sachets.
He said the NDLEA operatives also recovered from him 3.8litres of codeine based syrup in a commercial bus to deliver in Warri and Oghara, Delta State.
Babafemi said NDLEA also recovered a total of 101kg Canadian Loud factory packed in 202 tins of imported food item labelled ‘Bean Salad Mix’ at the Apapa seaport in Lagos.
He said the drugs were concealed in two Toyota Sienna buses in a container that came from Canada.
“The discovery was made during a joint examination of the container by NDLEA officers, men of Customs Service and other security agencies on Friday, July 25,” he said.
The War Against Drug Abuse, (WADA), social advocacy activities by NDLEA Commands equally continued across the country in the past week.
“Some of them include: WADA sensitisation lecture delivered to students and staff of Komu/Babaode High School, Babaode, Itesiwaju LGA, Oyo state; Beacon Christian Academy, Ngodo, Afikpo LGA, Ebonyi State.
“Others include Government Day Secondary School, Araba, Illela, Sokoto; and Government Junior College, Agege, Lagos.
“The Anambra state command of NDLEA paid WADA advocacy visits to the traditional rulers of Awka community, Obi Gibson Nwosu, Ezeuzu 11 and Ukpo community, Igwe Robert Eze, Okofia VI, among others,” the statement added.
In another development, the NDLEA intercepted large illicit drug consignments in Lagos, Cross River, Edo, Ondo, Nasarawa, Borno, Niger, Ogun, Gombe, Kaduna, Kogi states’ raids.
According to Babafemi, no fewer than 71,000 pills of tramadol, diazepam and exol-5 were recovered from a suspect by the NDLEA operatives on patrol along Abuja- Kaduna highway on July 23.
This, he said, was when the suspect was travelling with the consignment of opioids in a commercial bus going to Kano.
Meanwhile, in Borno State, a 30-year-old lady was on July 23 arrested by the NDLEA officers, who recovered 30.1kg skunk from her house at Muna Moforo area of Maiduguri.
Babafemi said a follow up operation later led to the arrest of her accomplice in the same area of the Borno State capital on July 25.
According to him, three brothers were on July 26 arrested when NDLEA operatives raided a cannabis plantation at bending corner forest, Idoani, Ose local council area of Ondo State.
“They destroyed 2,500 kilograms of skunk on an hectare of land and recovered 121.4kg of the same psychoactive substance, “he said.
Also, in Edo State, NDLEA officers on July 23 raided the Asakpa community in Benin city, where they arrested a 26-year-old lady.
Babafemi said the operatives recovered various quantities of Colorado, Loud, Arizona and skunk, all strains of cannabis as well as Methamphetamine from her.
In the same vein, a total of 105.4kg skunk was recovered by NDLEA operatives from an abandoned Honda car marked ABC 204 KM in Keffi, Nasarawa State.
Babafemi said their counterparts in Niger state on July 21 arrested a suspect with 6,400 pills of tramadol 225mg at Kasuwan Gwari area of Minna.
He said a notorious drug dealer was taken into custody and a 113kg skunk retrieved from his enclave in Ifo, Ogun state on July 24.
“This was after a violent resistance and attack on NDLEA operatives by members of his gang,” he said.
In another development, a total of 10,910 capsules of tramadol were seized from a suspect by the NDLEA officers on patrol along Gombe-Bajoga road, Gombe state on July 26.
Babafemi said the NDLEA operatives in Kogi state on July 24 intercepted a consignment of skunk concealed inside garri, dried scent leaves, and other food items along Okene-Lokoja highway.
A follow-up operation in Abuja led to the arrest of a 27-year-old who was planning to travel to Katsina state with the cargo and later to Qatar.
“Similarly, operatives in Kogi on Saturday, July 26 recovered 23,600 pills of tramadol, 300 ampoules of pentazocine injection and 700 grams of skunk from a truck at a motor park in Ayingba area of the state,” he said.
Babafemi quoted the NDLEA Chairman, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (retd), commending the officers and men of affected commands of the agency for the arrests and seizures of the past week.
Marwa praised their counterparts in all the commands across the country for pursuing a fair balance between their drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction efforts.(NAN)
