…Seizes 2.2 tons of illicit drugs in Kogi, Lagos, 10 other states in one week
By Hassan Zaggi
In what may be described as a huge harvest, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), has arrested 37 suspects in connection with trafficking of illicit drugs in 12 states of the country within the past one week.
Top among those arrested include a repentant/ rehabilitated Boko Haram member and the traditional ruler of Kajola, a border community between Ondo and Edo state, Baale Akinola Adebayo.
The 12 states where the suspected drug traffickers were arrested, according to a statement by the NDLEA Spokesman, Femi Babafemi, include Edo, Kaduna, Akwa Ibom, Kogi, Ogun, Gombe, Lagos, Kwara, FCT, Benue, Delta and Kano
The statement explained that the NDLEA officials intercepted heroin, skunk in deep freezers, cooking gas cylinders at Lagos airport, Idiroko; destroys 39.8 hectares of cannabis farms in Edo, Ondo
The NDLEA disclosed that its officers in the early hours of Friday, March 10, stormed Kajola forest in Kajola community, a border town between Edo and Ondo state where they destroyed three cannabis farms measuring 39.801546 hectares.
“The owner of the farms who claims to be the Ba’ale of Kajola, Akinola Adebayo, 35, was arrested on the farm at 2:30am, while two other suspects believed to be his workers: Arikuyeri Abdulrahman, 23 and Habibu Ologun, 25, were also nabbed in a hut near the farms.
“In the same vein, a 26-year-old Alayi Madu, who was a Boko Haram fighter for 15 years before he surrendered to the Nigerian military in 2021 was intercepted by NDLEA operatives on Thursday, March 9, along Abuja-Kaduna express road with 10 kilograms of skunk, which he said he bought in Ibadan, Oyo state and was taking the consignment concealed in a sack to Maiduguri, Borno state.”
On the other hand, at the Lagos airport in Ikeja, the NDLEA operatives acting on intelligence intercepted a consignment of 11.90 kilograms of heroin and 500grams of skunk concealed in deep freezers, which were part of a cargo that arrived from South Africa on March 7 onboard Ethiopian airline via Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Four suspects that played active roles in the movement of the drugs and a truck driver have been arrested so far in connection with the seizure.
Meanwhile, the statement further revealed that NDLEA operatives attached to the Gate C departure hall of the MMIA on March 9, intercepted a passenger, Aigbedion Philomena heading to Italy via Addis Ababa on an Ethiopian Airline flight. When her bags containing body cream, hair attachments, drinks, and some food items were searched, a total of 1.20kg tramadol capsules concealed inside gift wrapping sheet and covered with old daily newspapers were discovered.
According to the statement, “at the Idiroko land border, NDLEA operatives acting on intelligence on March 9, intercepted a commercial Toyota Camry Salon Car with reg. number JJJ 756 HB (Lagos) along Ilase-Akoko road, Idiroko with 34 compressed jumbo size wraps of imported skunk weighing 17kg and concealed in two cooking gas cylinders. Two suspects in the car were arrested.
“In Akwa Ibom state, Mrs. Hope Iniobong David, 42, was arrested with bags of cannabis sativa weighing 1,112kg (1.1 tons) in her house at Ediene Abak in Abak LGA, while operatives in Kogi state on March 9, recovered 25 cartons, containing 50,000 ampoules of pentazocine injection weighing 200kg in a Toyota Hiace bus marked LAM 652 LG, Kogi, travelling from Lagos to Abuja.”
Also, in Ogun state, the NDLEA operatives arrested a female drug dealer, Bola Egbebi in Ota LGA, with different quantities of Cannabis Sativa, Methamphetamine, Tramadol 225, Skuchies, Molly and Codeine cough syrup, while in Gombe state, another female drug dealer, Fatima Hassan (a.k.a Boss) was arrested on March 11, in her house at New Mile 3 area of Akko LGA with three and half blocks of skunk weighing 3.245kg.
The agency disclosed that in Kwara, operatives on patrol along Ilorin-Jebba highway on March 7, arrested two suspects: Ismaila Saidu and Dahiru Abdullahi with 50 bags of cannabis sativa weighing 578 kilograms, while in the FCT Abuja, 15 suspects were transferred by the Nigerian Army with 35 bags of cannabis weighing 384.3kg.
“A 56-year-old suspect, Shinayemà Kelenku was arrested at Tse-kelenku village, Logo LGA, Benue with 36.7kg skunk, while in Delta state, operatives intercepted a suspect, Chimeze Ndukaire, 56, conveying psychotropic substances worth over N30 million in a white Toyota Hiace bus with registration number Lagos FST 279 XS coming from Onitsha to Warri. The vehicle was intercepted on Friday 10th March at G.S.M junction, Asaba based on a tip-off.
“In Kano state, NDLEA operatives on Saturday 11th March raided the Sabon-gari area of Kano where they arrested a suspect, Chukwuebuka Christopher and recovered from him 7,740 bottles of Codeine based syrup, measuring 774 litres, concealed inside 43 sacks of garlic,” the statement noted.
