The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has captured 2.7kg of cannabis hidden in dried onions which were to be shipped to Dubai via a postal business.
It also stated no less than 1, 205, 260 tablets of opioids were confiscated in two interdiction operations in Kogi and Gombe states by operatives of the agency.
The spokesman for the anti-narcotic agency, Femi Babafemi, in a statement on Sunday also stated that officials at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja Lagos, interrupted the operations of a drug gang that operated between Nigeria, East Africa and Europe.
The authorities apprehended two members of the cartel.
He stated, “Operatives at the Lagos airport had on Monday, March 13, apprehended a member of the drug syndicate, Ejezie Ifeanyi, during the screening of inbound passengers on Ethiopian Airline aircraft from Malawi through Addis Ababa at the arrival hall.
“When a search was done on him, it was revealed that one of his two bags had a fake bottom concealment.
“During preliminary interrogation of the suspect, he revealed that a member of the syndicate was waiting at the airport car park to fetch him. A rapid follow-up operation resulted in the arrest of Chukwu Bright, who was waiting in a grey colour Mercedes Benz C180 coupe, tagged EKY 973 GQ to accept the cocaine consignment.”
Babafemi added that following the arrest, a thorough check of the bag was undertaken before the two suspects resulting in the seizure of three kilos of heroin.
He stated that studies indicated that the drug syndicate networked between Nigeria, and Malawi, Mozambique in East Africa and Europe.“
While Chukwu who resides in Lagos is responsible for the recruitment and coordination of the activities of mules on behalf of other members of the cartel located in Mozambique and Malawi, another group works from the southeastern part of Nigeria.
“Meanwhile, the NDLEA operatives at the SAHCO export shed of the MMIA on Wednesday, March 15, intercepted a jerry can of palm oil travelling to Dubai, United Arab Emirates. At the moment of assessment, it was revealed that 600 grams of cannabis sativa were secreted within the jerrycan of palm oil. A suspect, Tunde Ogunbowale, who delivered the package for shipment to Dubai was instantly arrested.”
Babafemi stated that “an attempt to export 2.7kg cannabis packaged as part of dried onions to Dubai through a postal service firm was frustrated by the NDLEA officers attached to the courier company, who seized a carton filled with colourful sachets of dried onions, used to conceal the illicit consignment.”
“In Kogi State, a total of 530,160 tablets of tramadol and 99,000 tabs of diazepam were intercepted along the Okene-Abuja route from a bus driver, Suleiman Oyedokun, 41, travelling from Onitsha, Anambra State and headed to Kontagora in Niger State on Monday, March 13.
“Same day, 576, 100 pills of tramadol disguised in packs of rubber slippers were apprehended by NDLEA agents at trailer garage, old mile 3 road area of Gombe metropolis, Akko LGA, Gombe State. Four suspects: Usman Suleiman; Ya’u Yusuf; Saidu Suleiman and Abubakar Umar have so far been apprehended in connection with the seizure.
“In Kaduna, 367 kilos of cannabis sativa were discovered from a car with registration number FKJ141DX,” he said.
According to him, two suspects: Monday Suleiman, 62, and Sama’ila Mohammed, 30 were detained while a bribe of N1,200,000 offered to the NDLEA personnel was recorded as part of materials to prosecute the suspects.
The statement claimed operatives in Delta State also on March 15 detained a local female distiller of cannabis sativa and dry gin, Ebi Akpotudua, 52. The distillation procedure is used to generate a cocktail drink famously known as monkey tail. She was detained at Ugbrooke near River Road, Warri with 19.5 litres of monkey tail and 22.2kg of cannabis.
