Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have busted a major drug distribution network in Lagos, uncovering illicit substances disguised as imported Christmas cookies and snacks. Two masterminds were arrested after a coordinated raid on their hideout in the Lekki area of the state.
The syndicate, operated by Deji Adesanya and Olubiyi Majekodunmi, allegedly imported consignments of Canadian Loud, a potent cannabis strain and colourful designer sachets bearing images of cookies and snacks, which were used to package the drugs in retail quantities.
The statement was issued by Femi Babafemi, Director of Media & Advocacy, NDLEA Headquarters, Abuja, on Sunday.
Acting on credible intelligence, NDLEA operatives raided their apartment on Ojulari Street, Ikate, Lekki, on Saturday, recovering a large quantity of the branded sachets and 5kg of Loud.
In another Lagos operation, a 38-year-old drug kingpin, Philip Ucheka, was arrested on Thursday, 27th November, at Ladipo, Mushin, while taking delivery of 110 pouches of Canadian Loud weighing 55.6kg.
Three delivery vehicles were seized from him. The same day, officers at a courier firm intercepted 100 grams of Loud concealed in a teddy bear imported from Thailand, while another logistics company recorded the recovery of 548 capsules of tramadol hidden in Vitamin C and Magnesium bottles on Friday, 28th November, en route to the United Kingdom.
NDLEA operatives in Oyo State, on patrol along the Lagos–Ibadan Expressway, arrested a 55-year-old suspect, Wasiu Kareem, on Saturday, 29th November, with 8,000 ampoules of pentazocine injection, 590 bottles of codeine syrup, 1,500 Co-codamol pills, and 9,900 tramadol capsules.
A major raid in Ondo State on Monday, 24th November, led to the arrest of seven suspects at the Ipe forest in Akoko South East LGA, where 3,077kg of skunk was recovered. Those arrested include John Ede, Ede Ndubuisi, Ikenna Abe, Eze Chukwuma, Maduabuchi Odo, Nnaji Chudubem and Gorge Okowor.
In Kogi State, NDLEA officers along the Okene–Lokoja highway arrested Anthony Sylvester, 49, while conveying 649kg of skunk in a truck on Wednesday, 26th November. Similarly, operatives at the Seme Special Area Command raided a warehouse at Ashipa, Seme border, on Friday, 28th November, arresting 33-year-old Abubakar Shuaibu with 487 blocks of skunk weighing 243.5kg.
Further arrests were recorded across Kano, Bauchi and the FCT. In Kano, 47-year-old Tsalha Alasan was apprehended along the Zaria–Kano road with 137kg of skunk on Monday, 24th November.
Three suspects Godspower Appeal, 50; Ernest Upong, 55 and Godday Chukwudi, 38 were nabbed in Bauchi State on Wednesday, 26th November, with 322 blocks of skunk weighing 209kg, alongside a black Toyota Highlander marked ABJ 533 EA used for transportation. Along the Abuja–Jos highway, John Ekojo, 51, was arrested with 210.15kg of skunk on Saturday, 29th November.
In Kaduna, a couple Abdullahi Abubakar, 45, and Jamila Abdullahi, 35 was intercepted along the Abuja–Kaduna highway with 725 rounds of 7.62mm live ammunition hidden in a sack of maize. Another suspect, Awwal Sabiu, 20, was arrested with 400 rounds of the same ammunition at the Abuja–Kaduna tollgate on Friday, 28th November.
Across the country, NDLEA commands also sustained War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation activities in schools, worship centres, workplaces, and communities. Beneficiaries included students of Government Junior Technical School, Kofar Kudu, Kano; Bright Eyes International School, Abakaliki; dock workers and clearing agents at Tincan Port, Lagos; Legacy International College, Nsukka; and Seatos School, Ikorodu, among others.
Commending the operatives involved in the nationwide operations, NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive, Brig.-Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd), urged officers to remain steadfast and sustain the agency’s balanced approach to drug control.
