By Our Correspondent
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intercepted consignments of cocaine and opioids concealed in cartons of clothing destined for the United Kingdom and Australia.
In a statement issued on Sunday, NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi said the seizures occurred on Friday during inspections at a courier company in Lagos.
“A total of 170 grammes of cocaine sealed in cellophane parcels and buried in the walls of a carton of clothes heading to Australia were recovered,” the statement read. “A wide range of opioids, including 200 ampoules of pentazocine injection, 1,100 capsules of tramadol, and 100 ampoules of promethazine injection, were recovered from another carton bound for the United Kingdom.”
In addition to the courier seizures, the NDLEA conducted raids across several states, resulting in further recoveries and arrests.
In Delta State, operatives raided Ejeonu village in Ukwuani Local Government Area last Sunday, destroying 27,500 kilogrammes of skunk spread across 11 hectares of farmland and recovering 22.9 kilogrammes of the substance. A 52-year-old suspect, Ifeanyichukwu Peter, was later arrested in Obiaruku.
A similar raid in Orogun village, Ughelli North LGA, on Tuesday led to the destruction of 37,500 kilogrammes of skunk on 15 hectares of farmland, the recovery of 55.4 kilogrammes, and the arrest of 30-year-old Godwin Vincent Osadera. Combined, the two operations destroyed 65,000 kilogrammes of skunk.
Elsewhere, 361 kilogrammes of skunk were recovered and a suspect, Husaini Suleiman, 42, arrested during a raid in Zaria, Kaduna State. Meanwhile, NDLEA officers on patrol along the Abuja-Kaduna highway intercepted a large cache of military-grade ammunition.
In the Federal Capital Territory, officers arrested Ogadi Peter, a 29-year-old businessman accused of producing drug-laced cakes and cookies for parties. Authorities recovered 800 grammes of skunk and 2.70 kilogrammes of drug-infused cookies from his residence in Life Camp.
The agency also recovered 181 kilogrammes of skunk from Aliyu Sani during a raid in Ogun State, while Sufiyanu Mohammed Misa was arrested in Taraba State with 105,850 opioid pills, including tramadol and diazepam.
In Oyo State, two suspects – Adeleke Aliyah and Aloba Abdulazeez – were arrested following the seizure of 99 litres of skuchies, and operatives in Edo State destroyed over 1,388 kilogrammes of skunk on two farms in Ago Forest, Orhionmwon LGA.
“A 25-litre jerry can of palm oil used to conceal 1.2 kilogrammes of Tramaking 225mg pills was recovered from Kofar Ruwa motor park in Kano on Monday following credible intelligence,” Babafemi added. “A suspect, Aminu Isa, was arrested at Sabuwar Sharada area of the same day with 30.5 kilogrammes of skunk.”
