JUST IN: NDLEA Intercepts 3 Trailer Loads Of Opioids, Seizes 3.5Million Pills, 344,000 Codeine Bottles

*Arrests 75-Year-Old Grandpa, 70-Year-Old Grandma Over Dealing In Illicit Drugs

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) intercepted three trailer loads of opioids in Lagos State, containing 3,450,000 pills and 344,000 bottles of codeine syrup.

According to an anti-narcotics agency spokesman, Femi Babafemi, in a statement issued on Sunday, the trucks were intercepted at Abule Ado in the state’s Amuwo Odofin Local Government Area, where three suspects were also arrested in connection with the seizure.

He revealed that the multi-billion-naira consignments were loaded into two 40-ft container trucks and another 20-ft truck at the AML bonded terminal in Abule-Osun, near the International Trade Fair Complex, before being transported to a large warehouse in Abule-Ado, where NDLEA officers arrested the suspects and recovered the opioid consignments last Thursday.

Babafemi said those arrested were the warehouse agent, Cosmas Obiajulu, 51; Ridwan Balogun, 25, and Banjo Tayo, 30, both drivers of two trucks; and the third driver, who jumped off to avoid arrest.

He also revealed that NDLEA agents arrested a suspect, Nwankwo Ejike, on Tuesday in the Coker area of Lagos, and recovered 100 litres of codeine syrup from him, while Clinton Akinye was apprehended in the same area the same day.

He added that 37.5 kilogrammes of cannabis sativa loaded in a Toyota Camry car were recovered from another suspect, Adegbola Segun, 47 when the car was intercepted at Mile 12 in Lagos last Monday.

Another opioid shipment containing 59,106 tramadol pills as well as various quantities of codeine syrup and Rohypnol was intercepted by NDLEA officers last Monday along Adamawa state’s Mubi-Yola road.

He revealed that two suspects linked to the drugs, Abubakar Auwal, 39, and Adamu Abubakar (a.k.a Bamanga), 25, a trans-border trafficker who was supposed to transport the shipment from Mubi to Cameroon, were apprehended immediately.

In Edo state, NDLEA agents raided the Iguiye forest in the Ovia North East local government area on Saturday, destroying a total of 11,636.185 kilogrammes of cannabis on three farms measuring 4.654474 hectares, recovering an additional 188 kilogrammes of the same psychoactive substance and arresting a suspect, Itah Nyong, during the overnight operation.

According to Babafemi, a 75-year-old grandfather, Jibril Audu, was arrested last Friday with 7.5 kilogrammes of cannabis at Oke-Asa village, Ijero-Ekiti, Ekiti state, during a raid operation, while a 70-year-old grandmother, Tikwase Nytor, was apprehended with 15.6 kilogrammes of the same substance last Thursday during a raid operation at Achusa and International Market road, Makurdi, Benue state.

He stated that NDLEA commands across the country balanced drug supply reduction operations with War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) advocacy campaigns in schools, markets, religious centres, and communities.

Meanwhile, while commending the agency’s Lagos, Edo, Ekiti, Benue, and Adamawa commands for their efforts over the past week, NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive Officer Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (Retd) assured that officers and men will continue to work with local and international partners to ensure that the scourge of substance abuse and illicit drug trafficking in Nigeria is reduced to a bare minimum.