NDLEA BUSTS COCAINE, OPIOID SHIPMENTS, ARRESTS FUGITIVE AFTER SIX YEARS ON THE RUN

NDLEA BUSTS COCAINE, OPIOID SHIPMENTS, ARRESTS FUGITIVE AFTER SIX YEARS ON THE RUN 

By Jennifer Nwosu 

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 38-year-old businessman, Philip Tunde, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, while attempting to smuggle 4.8kg of cocaine to Milan, Italy, concealed in shoe soles and the railings of travel bags.

In a statement released by the Director, Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, the NDLEA said Tunde was intercepted on Sunday, September 27, at the joint screening point in Terminal 2, ahead of his Royal Air Maroc flight. Officers recovered 16 parcels of cocaine from the soles of eight pairs of trainers and canvas shoes, alongside 195 wraps hidden in the railings of four travel bags. The suspect claimed he paid ₦16 million in cash for the cocaine concealed in the shoes, while the consignment in the bags was intended for his partner in Italy. He said he raised the money from compensation received after losing the tips of two fingers in an industrial accident at a plastic manufacturing company in Italy.

The agency also intercepted large consignments of cannabis and codeine-based syrup valued at more than ₦5 billion at the Apapa, Tincan Island and Onne seaports following months of intelligence gathering and shipment tracking. At Apapa, 124kg of Thai Loud, valued at ₦372 million, was recovered on September 3 from a container shipped from Bangkok, Thailand, concealed in two refrigerators and cartons.

At Onne Port in Rivers State, officers seized 22kg of Loud hidden in a travelling bag and three vehicles, a Toyota Matrix, Toyota Corolla and Hyundai Elantra, in one container. A second container held 109,600 bottles of codeine-based cough syrup weighing 16,440kg. The consignments, shipped from India through Saudi Arabia with their origin details allegedly altered, had a combined street value of ₦833.2 million. At Tincan Island Port, a September 29 examination of a container from Montreal, Canada, led to the seizure of 2,595 parcels of Canadian Loud weighing 1,297.5kg, concealed in a Toyota Sienna, a Hyundai Elantra, 24 blue drums and six jumbo bags. The consignment was valued at more than ₦3.8 billion.

In Osun State, NDLEA operatives destroyed 20,234kg of skunk from an 8.09-hectare cannabis farm in Area 4, Ife South Local Government Area, on September 30. In Plateau State, Agbo Dennis, 41, was arrested in Jos North on September 29 after officers seized 385kg of skunk packed in 33 bags.

Lagos operations led to the recovery of 209,000 tramadol tablets from an unoccupied compound at Divine Estate, Ago Palace, on September 28. In a follow-up operation at Ladipo Spare Parts Market, Ekundayo Taiwo, 23, was arrested on September 30 after 61g of Colorado and 24g of methamphetamine were intercepted in a waybill package from a commercial bus driver along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway. In Kogi State, officers intercepted a Lagos-Abuja commuter bus on the Okene-Lokoja highway on September 30 and recovered 1kg of methamphetamine concealed in two sachets. The owner, Michael Chukwuememka Uzoma, 29, was later arrested in Utako, Abuja.

In Edo State, a raid on the residence of Saturday Omimi, 35, in Uyere community, Ovia North-East Local Government Area, on October 2, led to the recovery of 32.2kg of cannabis. On the same day, Osazuwa Iyabor Michael, 23, was arrested at Auchi Bypass, Benin City, with 59g of Loud, 12g of Colorado, 19g of tramadol, 16g of methamphetamine, 4g of Swinol and 4g of Molly.

The NDLEA also arrested Idris Mohammed Kurra, 47, on September 29, six years after he allegedly jumped bail in a drug trafficking case before the Federal High Court in Jos. Kurra had been standing trial over the possession and dealing in 198kg of skunk before absconding in December 2020.

The agency sustained its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) campaign with sensitisation programmes at St. Paul’s Secondary School, Oji, Enugu; Olu-Odo Primary School, Igbogbo, Ikorodu, Lagos; Government Junior Secondary School, Tsamiya, Kano; Christ’s School, Ado Ekiti; and Government Science Secondary School, Lokoja, Kogi State, among other institutions and communities.

The Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. General Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended personnel of the MMIA, Apapa, Tincan, PHPC, Lagos, Edo, Bauchi, Plateau and Osun Commands for their professionalism and intelligence-led operations. He urged officers nationwide to sustain efforts against drug trafficking networks while maintaining the agency’s balanced approach to drug control.