The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested two Europe-based Nigerian businessmen attempting to smuggle 3.46 kilogrammes of cocaine to Paris, France, after ingesting 200 wraps of the illicit drug, while also intercepting a woman with 266 rounds of live AK-47 ammunition along the Abuja-Kaduna Expressway.
The two suspects, identified as Aliocus Odife and Sam Blackborn, were arrested last Wednesday, during the outward clearance of an Air France flight AF 832 from Abuja to Paris at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport.
The NDLEA said the suspects, who had travelled to Nigeria for holidays, were subjected to body scans which confirmed that they had ingested foreign objects suspected to be cocaine.
Odife, who claimed to live in France and work in a factory, reportedly arrived in Nigeria on October 21 for a short holiday. He subsequently admitted to ingesting 110 wraps of cocaine weighing 1.901 kilogrammes, which he excreted under observation.
His co-traveller, Blackborn, also tested positive during a body scan and admitted to swallowing 90 wraps weighing 1.559 kilogrammes. He equally excreted all the wraps under observation
The spokesman of the agency, Femi Babafemi in a statement on Sunday,said both consignors tested positive for cocaine, bringing the total recovered from the suspects to 200 wraps weighing 3.460 kilogrammes.
In a separate operation, NDLEA operatives on patrol along the Abuja-Kaduna Expressway arrested Aisha Isah at a tollgate with 266 rounds of live AK-47 ammunition.
The agency also arrested a 68-year-old man, Ifeanyi Egwolonwu, along the Zaria-Kano Expressway at Gwargwaje, Zaria, with 2,770 ampoules of pentazocine injection, 100 ampoules of diazepam injection, 11,000 tablets of diazepam and 4,500 tablets of Exol-5.
In Kaduna State, officers raiding Tashan Banke also arrested seven suspects, including Faisal Adamu, and recovered 178.85 kilogrammes of cannabis alongside quantities of diazepam, tramadol, Exol-5 and pregabalin.
Across other states, the agency recorded further seizures of illicit drugs in a series of operations targeting trafficking networks and drug distribution points.
In Lagos, operatives acting on intelligence intercepted a Volkswagen LT 28 bus along Kudirat Abiola Way, Ikeja on October 25, recovering 537 kilogrammes of skunk, a strong strain of cannabis.
Another team intercepted a brown J5 bus along the Gbagada-Oshodi Expressway the same day, seizing an additional 439 kilogrammes of the substance.
In Oyo State, two suspects, Oguntona Nasiru, 46, and Soji Balogun, 47, were arrested last Thursday, while loading 554 kilogrammes of skunk into a Volvo truck along Idere Road, Igboora.
The operation was a follow-up to an earlier raid targeting a notorious drug dealer identified as Omo Oba, who escaped arrest on October 25 when NDLEA operatives seized 309.5 kilogrammes of cannabis popularly known as Ghanaian Loud, allegedly linked to him.
In Kano State, operatives raided a location in the Tsamiya area of Gezawa last Monday, recovering 247,500 tablets of diazepam weighing 57.7 kilogrammes and 100,000 tablets of Exol-5 weighing 38.7 kilogrammes.
Two days later, officers stormed Dorayi area, where they arrested Ziya’ulhaq Abdullahi, 35, and Garba Muhammed, 52, with 19,250 pills of tramadol 225mg weighing 13.6 kilogrammes.
In Ondo State, four suspects, including Bassey Okon, 24; Abraham Edet, 20; and Oto Udo, 24, were arrested during a raid on cannabis farms in Ijare forest on October 25.
The operation led to the recovery of 16 bags of processed cannabis weighing 180 kilogrammes.
Similarly, NDLEA operatives, supported by soldiers, destroyed a 1.646-hectare cannabis plantation at Eko Camp, Ilushi, Esan South-East Local Government Area of Edo State, last Wednesday.
The plantation was estimated to have a yield of 4,115.53 kilogrammes of cannabis.
A 50-year-old woman, Christiana Uboi, was arrested at the camp with 301 kilogrammes of processed cannabis, while another 176 kilogrammes was recovered during the operation.
In Sokoto State, operatives of the agency’s Zone 7 Command arrested a 68-year-old man, Ibrahim Ayuba, on Saturday with 236.6 kilogrammes of skunk.
The agency said its commands conducted sensitisation activities during the week in schools, worship centres, workplaces and communities, including Obawole Grammar School II, Ojodu, Lagos; Nsukka High School, Enugu; Government Technical College, Dorayi Babba, Kano; and Ajagbe Comprehensive High School, Iperu, Ogun State.
Commenting on the arrests and seizures, NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig.-Gen. Buba Marwa (rtd), commended officers of the Abuja airport, Lagos, Kano, Kaduna, Sokoto, Ondo, Oyo and Edo commands for their operations.
Marwa described the arrest of the two cocaine couriers at the Abuja airport as a warning to Nigerians living abroad who might believe their foreign residence could provide cover for drug trafficking.
He said officers at the country’s entry and exit points remained alert, warning that there was no hiding place for anyone willing to risk their lives and liberty by ingesting illicit drugs for financial rewards.
The NDLEA chairman also directed officers across the country to sustain the pressure on drug cartels while intensifying drug demand reduction campaigns through its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation programme.
