The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has recovered one million pills of opioids in Borno and Anambra raids respectively.
This is contained in a statement by the Director, Media and Advocacy, NDLEA, Mr Femi Babafemi on Sunday in Abuja.
Giving the breakdown, Babafemi said that no fewer than 418,330 pills of tramadol 225mg, 100mg and tapentadol 250mg were recovered by the NDLEA operatives.
He said that 8,000 bottles of codeine-based syrup were also recovered from a warehouse at a building material market in Onitsha, Anambra State.
He said that the drugs were recovered on Tuesday Dec. 17 when NDLEA operatives raided the market following credible intelligence.
Meanwhile, at the Tincan Island port in Lagos, a total of 180,000 bottles of codeine syrup were recovered on Wed. Dec. 18 from a container, which originated from Mundra, India.
Babafemi said that the seizure was made during a joint examination of the container by men of NDLEA, Nigeria Customs Service, (NCS), DSS, Nigeria Police Force (NPF) and other security agencies at the port.
He said that a suspect, Makata Emmanuel, who was the consignee and notified party, was promptly taken into custody.
Also, a total of 293,000 capsules of tramadol, a pistol and 26 rounds of 7.65mm live ammunition were recovered from the duo of Ishaya Wabba, 54, and Samaila Audu, 44.
Babafemi said that they were arrested in a Toyota Sienna bus at Pompomari Bypass, Maiduguri, Borno state.
He said that another suspect Sanusi Hamid, 37, was nabbed at Gwange area of the state capital with 260, 000 capsules of the same psychoactive substance on Monday, Dec. 16.
Meanwhile, a 35-year-old suspect Modu Kolera was arrested on Wed, Dec. 18 at Custom area of Maiduguri with 8.5kg cannabis and 5,000 pills of tramadol.
“Other drugs intercepted were 7,500 tabs of diazepam; 14,500 tablets of exol and 50 litres of ‘suck and die’, a new psychoactive substance, in his Volkswagen Golf car marked DKW 812 AA,” he said.
In the same vein, a suspect, Gafar Saminu, 30, was arrested on Wed. Dec. 18, with 33.5 kilograms of cannabis sativa, at Ayete, Oyo state.
Babafemi said that NDLEA operatives in Enugu the same day raided the Aria new market where they recovered 94 kg of the same substance.
“In Lagos, a consignment of 32 kilograms ephedrine, a precursor chemical going to the South East was on Monday, Dec. 16 recovered at the Young Shall Grow Luxurious Vehicles Park, Maza-maza,” he said.
NDLEA operatives also arrested a businessman for an attempt to smuggle 256 wraps of cocaine into the country through Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA) Kano.
Babafemi, who said that the drugs weighed six kilograms, declared that the suspected drug trafficker, Chibuzo Olisaka, was nabbed during the inward clearance of passengers on Ethiopian Airlines flight ET 941 from Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire via Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
He said that the seizure, which was the single largest interception of cocaine at the Kano airport since the creation of MAKIA Command of NDLEA in 2006 was made on Sunday, Dec. 15.
Olisaka who claimed to be into import and export business was subjected to body screening during which he was found to have packed hundreds of cocaine pellets in his body.
Meanwhile, a similar attempt by an ex-convict, Akorede Olanrewaju, to export a consignment of rohypnol to South Africa was equally frustrated.
Babafemi said that the suspect had wanted to export the drugs through the export shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Ikeja Lagos, when NDLEA officers at the airport intercepted him.
“The consignment was hidden in a cargo containing gari, shoes, men’s singlets and other items.
“Olarenwaju was convicted for a similar crime earlier this year following his arrest on Dec. 12 2023 for attempting to ship 4.90kg tramadol and 2.10kg rohypnol to South Africa through the export shed of the Lagos airport.
“He was sentenced to two years imprisonment by a Federal High Court in Lagos with an option to pay a fine of N900, 000, which he paid and was freed before returning to repeat the same crime,” he said.
In another development, Italy-based business woman, Cynthia Akaeen, was on Wed, Dec. 18, arrested by NDLEA officers while trying to board a Royal Air Maroc flight to Italy via Addis Ababa.
Babafemi said that the suspect was intercepted at the departure point of terminal 2 of the Lagos airport during an outward clearance of passengers going to Italy.
“A total of 9,190 tablets of various brands of tramadol weighing 6.00kg were recovered from her. According to her, she was promised 1,000 Euros upon successful delivery of the consignment in Italy,” he said.
