Lucky Obukohwo, Reporting
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested some individuals who in their attempt to smuggle out drugs from the country, concealed them in their prayer beads, packs of board games, and female clothes to the United States of America, Saudi Arabia, Italy, Poland, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE)through logistics firms and the Lagos airport.
Some of the illicit consignments concealed for the aborted missions include cocaine, tramadol, Loud, Molly, and others.
The Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, said that at least two suspects behind some of the aborted missions at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos, have already been arrested.
One of them is a 43-year-old businesswoman, Jakpor Egware May, who was nabbed at the Gate ‘C’ departure hall of the Lagos airport while attempting to board an Air France flight to Italy on Saturday, 8th March 2025.
When she was searched, 190 parcels of tramadol 225mg and another parcel of skunk, a strain of cannabis, were recovered from her luggage. In her statement, she claimed that she bought the drugs herself with the intention of reselling them in Italy.
At the export shed of the Lagos airport, NDLEA officers on Tuesday, 11th March, arrested a 60-year-old suspect, Yahaya Fatai Ayinla, while attempting to ship cargo containing clothes used to conceal 400 grams of skunk going to New York, United States of America.
At some logistics companies in Lagos, efforts by drug traffickers to export over two kilograms of Loud, Molly, and tramadol (365mg and 225mg) hidden in vitamin C bottles and female clothes to the US were frustrated by NDLEA operatives of the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation (DOGI).
Other shipments of 230 grams of cocaine concealed in prayer beads, soles of locally made shoes, and packs of board games heading to Saudi Arabia, Poland, and the UAE were equally intercepted between Monday, 10th March, and Wednesday, 12th March.
In Kano, a total of 727 blocks of compressed skunk weighing 479 kg were recovered from a 40-year-old suspect, Hassan Haruna, who was arrested by NDLEA operatives at the Chalawa area of the state on Wednesday, 12th March, while no fewer than 58,300 pills of tramadol were intercepted along the Kabba-Obajana highway, Kogi State, in a commercial bus coming from Lagos en route to Abuja on Tuesday, 11th March.
Raid operations in Kachia, Kaduna State, on Thursday, 13th March, led to the arrest of Idris Hamza, 21, with 4,900 pills of tramadol 225mg seized from him, just as a similar exercise in the Hayin Banki area of Kaduna North LGA on Friday, 14th March, resulted in the arrest of 25-year-old Aminu Magaji, from whom 2,900 tablets of tramadol 225mg were recovered.
While a total of 40,200 tablets of tramadol 225mg were recovered from the duo of Olowoko Faruk and Akeem Ridwan along the Ilorin-Jebba expressway, Bode Saadu, Kwara State, on Friday, 14th March, NDLEA operatives equally seized 21,700 capsules of the same opioid from a suspect, Salisu Usman, along the Eiyenkorin expressway, Ilorin, on Thursday, 13th March.
In Taraba State, NDLEA officers on Friday, 14th March, arrested Polycarp Adeku, 35, at Bente Road, Kurmi LGA, with 15.77 kg of skunk, while in Osun State, operatives on Thursday, 13th March, intercepted a commercial bus marked SGB 564 YS coming from Idumota, Lagos Island, in front of King University, Ode-Omu, with a total of 48.7 kg of Ghanaian Loud, Colorado, and Canadian Loud, all strains of cannabis.
No fewer than nine suspects have been arrested in connection with the seizure in Osogbo and Ile-Ife during follow-up operations.
A 58-year-old suspect, Ade Esan (aka Pastor), was arrested on Tuesday, 11th March, along Gwagwalada expressway, FCT, Abuja, with 27,800 pills of tramadol 225mg, while another suspect, Usman Mohammed, 26, was nabbed the same day with various quantities of skunk and cocaine at Wuse Zone 3 area of Abuja.
In Abia State, NDLEA operatives on Saturday, 15th March, raided the Ntigha community, Isiala-Ngwa North LGA, where a 34-year-old suspect, Chinaza Nwogu (aka Young Money), was arrested with 274 grams of heroin, 141 grams of methamphetamine, 2.931 kg of cannabis sativa, 4 grams of cocaine, and a monetary exhibit of ₦753,015.00.
Meanwhile, Commands and formations of the Agency across the country continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation activities in schools, worship centres, workplaces, and communities, among others, in the past week.