Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), have intercepted large consignments of assorted illicit substances at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja and the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.
This is even as the anti-narcotics agency also arrested nine suspects in connection to the movement of the illicit drugs.
In a related development, a 35-year-old physically challenged lady, Kasarachi Onumajuru, who was hiding under her condition to deal in drugs in Umudumaonu community, Mbaitoli local government area of Imo State, was also arrested on Sunday May 29.
NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, said first on the list of the 11 suspects arrested in connection to seizures at the two airports was Ofor Chima Chileobi, who had on Friday, May 20 attempted to export 200 blocks of cannabis sativa to Dubai, UAE. The substance weighing 30.20kg was concealed in 40 sacks of bitter leaf through the SAHCO export shed, a cargo wing of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos.
Also, on the same day, 10 cartons of khat with a gross weight of 354.600kg were also seized at the NAHCO import shed of the airport.
The following day, Saturday, May 21, a freight agent, Roland Orinami, was arrested by NDLEA operatives attached to the local wing of the Lagos Airport with 1.90kg Loud, a variant of cannabis, factory-packed in some bottles while trying to send same via flight to Abuja.
A follow-up operation in Abuja led to the arrest of a taxi driver, Nsikak Evans, sent to collect the consignment. His confession also led to the arrest of the actual owner, Adesanya Olakunle Isaac, at his house in Life Camp area of Abuja.
Adesanya, who claims to be into Information Technology (IT), accepted ownership of the seized drug, which he said was meant for an upcoming birthday party of one of his friends.
On Tuesday, May 24, another freight agent, Moshood Azeez Olaide, was arrested at NAHCO export shed of the Lagos Airport when he presented a cargo containing psychotropic substances heading to Dubai.
The seized drugs include Tramadol 225mg, Rohypnol and MDMA. A follow-up operation led to the arrest of another suspect linked to the crime, Olagboye Selim, on Friday May 27.
On Monday, May 23, another freight agent, Lasebikan Felix Gbega, was arrested with 200 bottles of pentazocine injection, with a brand name “Drutapent” weighing 1.05kg. The consignment was heading to the United States of America.
Another agent, Akuta Chioma Lucy, was on Thursday, May 26 arrested at the SAHCO export shed while attempting to export 14.75kg of khat concealed inside other vegetable leaves and food condiments such as bitter leaf, scent leaf, pepper, all packed in bags for shipment to the United Kingdom.
At the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, a 45-year-old Ezika Ugochukwu Nicholas from Ichida, Anocha area of Anambra State, was arrested on Thursday, May 26 for ingesting 60 pellets of cocaine weighing 1.037kg on arrival from Addis Ababa on board Ethiopian Airline.
Ezika, who claims he’s into shoe business before his arrest, travelled to Ethiopia on May 23 on the invitation of the person who gave him the drug, which he ingested before returning into the waiting arms of NDLEA officers at the Abuja airport.
Meanwhile, no fewer than 335,820 tablets of Tramadol, Exol 5, Diazepam and Rohypnol as well as 400 bottles of codeine syrup concealed in bags of vegetables have been intercepted in Abuja in a hummer passenger bus coming from Enugu on Monday, May 30.
EFCC added that the bus driver, Augustine James, 35, was helping investigation.
