NDLEA Busts Over ₦10 Billion Worth of Drugs at Lagos Ports
By Victor Idajili
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has made one of its biggest drug seizures this year, intercepting cocaine, Canadian Loud and opioids worth more than ₦10 billion in a series of intelligence-led operations in Lagos and other states.
NDLEA spokesman Femi Babafemi said the operations happened over the past week.
On July 23, operatives arrested 55-year-old businessman Onuigbo Ndubisi Chinedu at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport. He was trying to export 3.30kg of cocaine hidden inside the walls of cartons of food items meant for the UK.
The drugs were first caught a day earlier at the airport’s export shed. Three cargo agents Nkwor Onyekachukwu Justina, Adeleke Abiola Taoheed and Ukanwa Grace Pilgrim were picked up first. That led NDLEA to Kenneth Okakpu, who delivered the consignment to them.
Investigations pointed to Onuigbo as the syndicate leader. He was arrested while allegedly trying to ship another cocaine consignment to the UK.
On July 21, NDLEA arrested Emmanuella Chukwu-Edo, 31, at her Surulere home. She had just received 2.80kg of Canadian Loud a strong synthetic cannabis that came in from the US on a United Airlines flight.
Two days later, on July 24, a joint inspection at the airport uncovered 2.24 million pills of Tapentadol 250mg from India on an Air Maroc flight. The pills are worth over ₦2.2 billion.
Before that, NDLEA also intercepted tramadol hidden inside containers of black soap at a Lagos courier company. The parcel was also headed to the UK.
At Apapa Seaport, operatives found 4,777 sachets of Canadian Loud weighing 2,388.5kg stuffed inside three imported vehicles in a container. NDLEA estimates the street value at over ₦7.1 billion.
Outside Lagos, NDLEA arrested Mustapha Sani, 30, in Baure, Safana LGA of Katsina State. He was caught with 323 rounds of military-grade ammunition 200 rounds of 7.62mm and 123 rounds of 7.6mm.
Babafemi said all the suspects are in custody and investigations are ongoing.
