A 52-year-old businessman Ejiofor Emeka has been arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA) Kano following which a total of 127 wraps of cocaine concealed in his private part and stomach have been recovered after days under excretion observation.
A statement on Sunday by the spokesperson of the anti-narcotics agency, Femi Babafemi, said Ejiofor who operates boutiques in Lagos and Onitsha, Anambra state, was taken into NDLEA custody upon his arrival from Bangkok, Thailand via Ethiopian Airlines flight ET 941 last Wednesday following credible intelligence.
Babafemi said when he was taken for body scan, the test confirmed he ingested illicit drugs and had some concealed in his private part, noting that a total of 58 wraps of cocaine were immediately recovered from his pant after which he was taken for excretion observation during which he egested 69 pellets of cocaine in seven excretions bringing the total number of wraps of the class A drug recovered from him to 127, weighing 1.388 kilogrammes.
Babafemi added that three consignments of illicit drugs heading to the United Kingdom were last Thursday and Friday intercepted at a courier company in Lagos by NDLEA operatives.
He said one of the shipments, 1.74 kilogrammes of methamphetamine was recovered from blocks of glass ceramics, while another shipment contains 114 grammes and 168 grammes of pentazocine and tramadol injections respectively just as the third consignment contains 48 grammes of tramadol capsules concealed in Vitamin C container, all going to the UK. Bids by another set of criminal syndicates to ship 2.6kg skunk and 422grams tapentadol 250mg concealed in tablets of black soap heading to Turkey; 169 grammes of cocaine hidden in lady’s handbags going to Australia and 568 grammes of Loud, a strong strain of cannabis concealed in containers of herbs going to United Arab Emirates were thwarted by NDLEA operatives at some courier companies in Lagos.
Babafemi said a total of 27,510 pills of rohypnol concealed in sachets of alcoholic drinks going to South Africa have been intercepted by NDLEA officers at the export shed of the Murtala Mohammed International Airport (MMIA) Lagos. He added that after the initial arrest of a freight agent and a cab driver linked to the shipment, a follow up operation at Oyingbo market in Lagos led to the arrest of the mastermind, 46-year-old Samuel Omoruyi (alias Yellow) on 2nd October.
He said same day, an Italy-based businessman Enehizena Uyimwen was arrested by operatives while attempting to export 3,700 pills of tramadol 225mg and 2,600 tabs of tapentadol 200mg hidden in food items to the European country. He claimed he was trafficking the opioids for someone else for a fee of €945.
In Edo state, a raid of the home of a suspect Emmanuel Sunday, 33, at Ugbekpe Ekperi in Etsako Central LGA led to the recovery of 47kg skunk, a strain of cannabis. Two suspects: Nureni Eleweodo, 48, and Oladejo Taiwo, 52, were last Wednesday arrested at Omifufun village, Ife South local government area, Osun state following the seizure of 635 kilogrammes of skunk from their Toyota Hiace bus marked DDA65ZY.
He said two other suspects: Timothy Omiwole, 41, and Isaac Achiatan, 36, were nabbed at same location with 100kg skunk recovered from them along with their motorcycle.
While Okoro Julius, 20, and Onyebuchi Nwibo, 25, were arrested in different parts of Port Harcourt, Rivers state in connection with the seizure of 8.5kg skunk on Friday, Sulaiman Kalalu, 46, was nabbed after 29.5 kilogrammes of same substance was found in his house at Bayan Asiti, Jibia town, Katsina state on Saturday.
In Niger state, NDLEA officers last Wednesday arrested Yisa Daniel, 29, at New Bussa where 22,000 capsules of tramadol, 800 ampoules of pentazocine injection and 150,000 pills of exol-5 were seized from him. A total of 312 kilogrammes skunk was recovered from a bush at Ologede camp, Ogbese, Ondo state while operatives on patrol along Benin-Lagos expressway last Thursday intercepted two suspects: Francis John, 39, and Adeyemi Taiwo, 46, in a car conveying 141.8 kilogrammes skunk. In Kaduna, a suspect Rufai Ahmed, 27, (alias Farin Malam) was nabbed at Abuja/Kaduna toll gate while conveying 150,000 pills of exol-5 from Lagos to Katsina.
The commands and formations of the agency across the country continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitization activities to schools, worship centres, work places and communities among others in the past week.
Meanwhile, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig Gen Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd) while commending the officers and men of MMIA, MAKIA, DOGI, Kano, Edo, Rivers, Kaduna, Katsina, Niger, Ondo, and Osun commands of the agency for the arrests and seizures, urged them and their compatriots across the country to maintain their tenacity, professionalism and balanced approach to the drug control efforts of the agency.
