The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested two businessmen, alongside a Canada-based nurse, for their involvement in cocaine and cannabis trafficking at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos.
This arrest is part of a broader crackdown on drug smuggling activities across the country, with NDLEA intercepting over N7 billion worth of opioids at various seaports.
Ihejirika Okechukwu Emmanuel, a 51-year-old businessman, was apprehended on October 15, 2024, while attempting to board an Ethiopian Airlines flight to Thailand.
Upon a body scan, authorities discovered that he had ingested five large wraps of cocaine weighing 400 grams. Ihejirika confessed, stating, “I was to be paid for the successful delivery of the drug in Thailand, and I needed the money to boost my fish importation business.”
26-year-old businessman Iwuagwu Ikedi Victory was also arrested on October 17, 2024, during his arrival from Brazil via Addis Ababa. A scan revealed he had ingested 30 wraps of cocaine but excreted only 29 in Addis Ababa, handing them over to another individual. He confessed, “I was promised N2.5 million for trafficking the drug.”
Canadian nurse
A Nigerian Canadian nurse, Usman Grace Khadijat Olami was arrested on October 4, 2024, upon her arrival from Toronto via Paris.
NDLEA officers found 70 parcels of Canadian Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis, weighing 35.7 kg in her luggage. During interrogation, Olami explained that she was instructed by her boyfriend to bring the drug into Nigeria. “I was asked by my boyfriend to come with this consignment of Loud,” she admitted.
Seizure of opioids at seaports
Meanwhile, NDLEA operatives at the Apapa and Onne seaports made significant drug busts. On October 15, 2024, 162,351 bottles of codeine-based syrup were intercepted at the Apapa seaport during a joint operation with the Nigeria Customs Service.
Additionally, over 7 million pills of Tapentadol and Carisoprodol, worth N3.6 billion, were seized from a container at the Port Harcourt Port Complex, Onne. Other seizures included 15.6 million opioid pills and 337,000 bottles of codeine syrup, bringing the total drug value to N7.1 billion.
Across Nigeria, NDLEA continued its aggressive enforcement of drug laws. In Bauchi, a suspect was arrested with 76,600 tramadol pills concealed in his vehicle, while in Ondo, three suspects were caught with 672 kg of cannabis. In Edo state, over 10,590 kg of cannabis was destroyed on a farm, and several suspects were apprehended.
In Lagos, methamphetamine operations led to the arrest of Andrew Joseph Anoriode with 3 kg of meth and 241 kg of cannabis. A meth lab was also discovered in the state, and precursor chemicals for manufacturing methamphetamine were seized.
What you should know
NDLEA has strengthened its fight against drug trafficking with the launch of a new Marine Command Headquarters in Lagos, donated by the British government.
The facility is expected to tighten control over drug barons and cartels operating through waterways and seaports.
NDLEA Chairman, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), highlighted recent successes, including the seizure of over 61,000 kg of drugs and 41 arrests.
Ugonnia Ozibo
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