By Jemimah Wellington, JKNewsMedia Reporter
IN A sweeping series of drug busts, operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), intercepted opioid consignments bound for destinations in the United States (US), United Kingdom (UK), Cyprus, and Oman.
Concealed within shoes, hair attachments, and even vegetable bags, these narcotics were seized in Lagos and other states, valued at over N16 billion.
At Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, 2,118 tramadol pills hidden within 13 pairs of shoes destined for Cyprus were confiscated.
Following a tip, NDLEA operatives arrested Okenwa Kelvin Uchenna in Enugu, recovering 380 more tablets, a Toyota Avalon, and nearly a million naira in cash.
In other coordinated efforts, 293 ampoules of injectable drugs and cannabis were found concealed in hair attachments intended for international shipment via three courier companies.
NDLEA, in a joint operation with Customs and other security agencies at Tincan Port in Lagos and Onne Port in Rivers State, conducted a thorough search of flagged containers.
Their meticulous inspection led to the discovery of 26.25 million tramadol pills, 508,400 bottles of codeine syrup, and large quantities of cannabis.
The agency also intercepted 700kg of methamphetamine stored in plastic drums, 10 million tablets of Toradol Benzhexol, and 28kg of synthetic cannabis strain known as “Loud.”
In Lagos, agents arrested Tsolaye Eburajolo in connection with a drug-filled shipment from Canada, along with a N10 million bribe offered to NDLEA officers to release him, which was refused.
In further crackdowns, Lagos operatives raided a shrine in Ajah, seizing 2,760kg of cannabis and detaining suspects Gbenga Abiodun and Sunday Abiodun.
Another 770kg of cannabis was seized along the Lagos-Ibadan expressway. In a hidden storage compartment at Lekki Phase 1, the NDLEA found drugs stashed beneath a rug and mattress, recovering thousands of pills and syrups.
Across Nigeria, NDLEA extended its operations to Plateau, Abuja, and Edo State.
The officers arrested individuals with cannabis and other narcotics concealed in food items or transported for illegal sale, with major traffickers identified and detained in Abuja’s Wuse Market and other urban locations.
