By Emma Njoku
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested two ladies and six men for attempting to import hundreds of cocaine pellets into the country and export thousands of tramadol 255mg tablets among other illicit drugs to Europe, through the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA), Abuja; Akanu Ibiam International Airport (AIIA), Enugu, and Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Lagos.
The Director, Media and Advocacy of the anti-narcotic agency, Mr. Femi Babafemi, who made the disclosure in a statement, yesterday, said the streaks of arrests and seizures began last Sunday when a 52-year-old father of three, Okwo Paul Okechukwu, was arrested upon his arrival from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, via an Ethiopian airline flight, at the Abuja airport, for ingesting 76 pellets of cocaine.
“During preliminary interview, Okechukwu, who hails from Enugu Ezike, Igbo Eze Local Government Area (LGA) of Enugu State, said he was into selling women’s wigs and hair attachment before veering into the drug trade. He has since completed excreting all the 76 wraps of the drug he swallowed while under observation at the agency’s facility in Abuja,” Babafemi disclosed in the statement.
The statement further read: “In the same vein, another father of three, Lawrence Chijioke, 42, was arrested at the Abuja airport the same day, in an operational synergy between NDLEA and Nigeria Customs Service at the NAIA. Chijioke, who hails from Umuahia in Umuahia LGA, Abia state, was arrested during an inward clearance of Ethiopian Airline flight from Addis Ababa, with 529 pellets of cocaine weighing 11.70kg concealed in his bag. In his statement to anti-narcotic officers, he claimed he was promised N2 million, which he planned to use to boost his business, upon successful delivery of the cocaine consignment in Abuja.
“NDLEA operatives, also, on Saturday, arrested 29-year-old Ms. Onuorah Caritas Onyinye at the Enugu airport, upon arrival on Ethiopian airline flight from Addis Ababa. A search of her luggage led to the discovery of 2.192 kilograms of cocaine concealed in two designer’s women handbags with false linings. Attempts by drug traffickers to export different illicit drugs through the NAHCO export shed at the Lagos airport to Europe and the United Arab Emirate were also frustrated by officers and men of the agency.”
The statement added that the operatives, last Monday, intercepted some illicit substances concealed in a consolidated cargo going to Dubai, UAE. Apart from 24 parcels of Loud, a variant of cannabis, which is largely grown in the United States and Canada, other substances recovered from the cargo include a precursor for methamphetamine, BMK glycidic acid; tablets of designer drug MDMA and another five parcels of cannabis. No fewer than four freight agents were arrested in connection with the seizure. They include: Balogun Adesola Olamilekan; Sulaimon Kaosarat Yetunde; Benjamin Christopher Joel; and Omoniyi Ibukun Abraham.
Also, same last Monday, the bid by an Italy-bound passenger, Tony Osas, to export 10, 250 tablets of tramadol 255 mg to Europe, through the Lagos airport, was foiled by NDLEA operatives who intercepted him at gate B departure hall during outward clearance of passengers on a Turkish airline flight to Milan.
During a search of his luggage, Osas, who hails from Ovia South-West Local Government Area of Edo State was found with the illicit substance that weighed 5.70kg concealed inside gari, a local cassava product tucked in his black handbag.
In Kaduna, a driver Jamilu Lawal, was arrested penultimate Sunday, along Abuja-Kaduna expressway, with 157,000 tablets of diazepam weighing 37.5kg. A follow up operation the same day led to the arrest of the actual owner of the consignment, Abubakar Isiyaku, in Katsina. Another suspect, Isah Mohammed, was arrested the same day in Kano during a follow up operation, after the interception of his consignment, 2,500kg rubber solution (solvent) locally called Shalisha in Kaduna.
In Abuja, no fewer than four people were arrested over 345.4kg cannabis seizures in the FCT, while Mohammed Auwal, 37; Godspower John, 34, and Chukwuma Odeh, 35, were arrested in Jabi Park, over a 77.7kg drug consignment last Monday. Isah Yusuf, 25, who hails from Kaura Namoda LGA, Zamfara State, was nabbed with 267.7kg cannabis when operatives raided DeiDei area of the FCT on Saturday.
In Sokoto, operatives on stop-and-search operation, along Gusau-Sokoto road, arrested one Tochukwu Joseph Oranusi with 20,100 tabs of rohypnol, inside a commercial bus coming from Onitsha, Anambra state. Bottles of codeine syrup weighing 15.2 litres and 400grams of rohypnol tabs whose owner, Buhari Sambo, was later arrested, were also recovered from the vehicle.
In Anambra, a suspect Azubuike Ogbanu, was arrested with 76 cups of arizona, 172 sachets of skunk, 82 pinches of methamphetamine, 20 sachets of Loud, and 10 wraps of colorado when his base, Loren Hostel, Ifite, Awka, was raided by operatives last Thursday.
While commending the officers and men of the MMIA, NAIA, AIIA, Kaduna, Sokoto, FCT and Anambra Commands for the arrests, seizures and their tenacity, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd) urged them and their colleagues across the country, to remain steadfast in pursuit of the agency’s goal of ridding all parts of the country of illicit substances.