By Emma Njoku
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), at the weekend, intercepted 12,385 kilograms of Loud Cannabis, a strong variant of the illicit weed, imported from a neighbouring country and smuggled into Lagos through the waterways.
Director, Media and Advocacy, Mr. Femi Babafei, in a statement, yesterday, said narcotic officers, acting on credible intelligence that large consignment of illicit drug were brought in from the West African country through the ocean and ferried with boats to the Eko Atlantic Beach, Victoria Island, from where they would be distributed to drug hotspots such as Island, Peti Alagba and others across Lagos and other states, stormed the beach on Saturday, November 25, 2021, recovered the consignments along with two long trucks, a Toyota Sienna bus and arrested three suspects: Abdulkadri Zakari, 24; Ka’abu Sausu, 45 and Lawrence Adie, 27.
In the same vein, a 70-year-old woman, Mrs. Beatrice Aigbedion was among suspects arrested in parts of Edo, in connection with the seizure of over 5,000 kilograms of assorted illicit drugs across the state.
“After days of surveillance, NDLEA operatives on Wednesday, November 24, stormed a warehouse at Uhiere, Ovia North East Local Government Area of the state, where they recovered a total of 4,261.5kg of cannabis sativa and a suspect, Ikong Stanley, arrested. The previous day, Tuesday, November 23, 1,240kg was equally seized at a warehouse in Uzebba, Owan West LGA of the state.
“At the point of her arrest in Irrua last Wednesday, Mrs. Aigbedion was caught with different quantities of codeine cough syrup, swinol and rohypnol, while another dealer, Joseph Onyemaechi, 50, was also nabbed at Ikpoba Okha, Upper Sakponba- Benin City, on Friday, with different types of psychotropic substances weighing 2.055kg. Similarly, Gabriel Akioya and Isa Salihu were arrested on Thursday, November 25, at Irrua, Esan Central LGA with various quantities of codeine, tramadol, swinol and rohypnol,” Babafemi further disclosed.
In Delta state, operatives raided Hampton Towers and Spa Hotel, Okpanam road, Asaba, where Dobedient Etumudor and Thompson Chukwuemeka were arrested with different quantities of psychoactive substances, while another dealer, Emeka Ben, was nabbed with 4.7 grams of methamphetamine, along Asaba – Ibusa road. Other suspects arrested for dealing in meth, cannabis, cocaine, and heroin include Ifeanyi Odibe, Uche Onwurah, and Justice Obika.
In Kano, a drug dealer, Alhaji Bukar Malan Abdu, was arrested with 143 kilograms of cannabis, while 466kg of the same drug was seized in the home of one Bashir Shuaibu, an indigene of Edo State but resident in Kano. Last Thursday, Chima Obi, a drug dealer based in Maiduguri, Borno state, was arrested with 73.2kg codeine, at an NDLEA checkpoint in Potiskum, Yobe state.
In his reaction to the arrests and huge seizures in Lagos, Edo, Delta, Kano and Yobe states, Chairman/Chief Executive of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd) commended the officers and men involved in the operations and charged them to always strive to record greater feats until the drug supply and drug demand reduction targets of the agency are fully achieved.