By Helen Okechukwu, JKNMedia Reporter, Port Harcourt
THE NATIONAL Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) dismantled a high-profile cocaine syndicate in Lagos, capturing the ringleaders, Agbakoba John Mmadu and his wife, Agbakoba Ijeoma Chinwe, along with their associate, Okoye Ifeoma Maryjane.
Acting on months of intelligence gathering, NDLEA operatives arrested the 54-year-old Mmadu at Ago Palace Way, Okota, while his 39-year-old wife and their 31-year-old stash keeper were apprehended at Lilly Estate, Amuwo Odofin.
During the operation on July 3, agents seized 7.652 kilograms of cocaine from Mmadu and 2.42 kilograms of the drug from Chinwe and Maryjane, totaling 10.1 kilograms with an estimated street value of over N2.1 billion.
On July 4, in a separate raid, NDLEA operatives in Benue State intercepted 350 grams of cocaine hidden in an MP3 speaker at a checkpoint along Enugu Road, Otukpo.
This led to the arrest of the consignment’s owner, 25-year-old Odeh Anthony, at Flight Motor Park in Otukpo.
In another operation on July 3 along Ngurore-Yola Road in Adamawa State, NDLEA officers arrested Yves Ahmat Gali, a Chadian national, traveling on a commercial bus from Kano to Yola.
They found 20 compressed blocks and nine plastic containers of Loud, a potent strain of cannabis, weighing 5.2 kilograms concealed in a loudspeaker.
The same day in Kano, NDLEA apprehended Yusuf Abdulrahman, a 25-year-old youth corps member, at Corpers Lodge, Sumaila, with 1.25 kilograms of Loud.
On July 5 in Osun State, Ba’ale Ige Babatunde, the 50-year-old head of Akarabata community in Ile-Ife, was arrested with fresh cannabis plants weighing 5 kilograms.
In Ondo State, NDLEA operatives arrested Monday Ali, 49, and Jimoh Alewi, 37, after raiding Ikota Forest in Ifedore LGA.
The agency also destroyed 42,500 kilograms of cannabis on 17 hectares of farmland and seized 73.5 kilograms for prosecution during a five-day operation.
In Abuja, on July 6, officers intercepted Sanusi Mamman, 28, and Usaini Ibrahim, 20, transporting 1,132 bottles of codeine syrup, 13,540 pills of tramadol, 50,000 pills of diazepam, and 59 pills of rohypnol in a vehicle along Abaji-Gwagwalada.
The suspects claimed they were bringing the drugs from Onitsha, Anambra State.
In his regular commendations, NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), praised the officers for their efforts in reducing drug supply and their ongoing War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitization activities, which continue to educate communities and schools nationwide about the dangers of drug abuse.
