The National Drug Enforcement Agency, or NDLEA, reports that in three major busts of drug cartels operating in Amuwo Odofin, Idumota, and the SAHCO shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, its operatives have seized no fewer than 14,481,519 pills of Tramadol and bottles of codeine syrup valued at over N13 billion in street value.
The raid on House 8/10 Hon. Wahuha Avenue, Divine Estate, Ago Palace area of Amuwo Odofin on Sunday, October 29, marked the start of the three intelligence-led operations, according to NDLEA. During this raid, 490,000 tramadol pills and 81,519 bottles of codeine syrup measuring 4,510,000mls were found.
This was disclosed in a statement issued on Sunday by Femi Babafemi, the NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy.
Babafemi said the anti-narcotic agency, in a similar operation on Tuesday 31st October, swooped on a secret warehouse operated by a billionaire Idumota trader, Nwaoha Anayo, located at Onitire, Aguda area of Surulere where 12,700,000 pills of tramadol were recovered.
According to the statement, at least six members of a syndicate using their official cover to facilitate the smuggling of illicit drugs through the Skyway Aviation Handling Company (SAHCO) warehouse at the Lagos airport into the country have also been arrested and 1,210,000 pills of tramadol seized from them in a painstaking operation that lasted for weeks.
The spokesman said the six suspects already in NDLEA custody include Oladele Sanya-Olu, Lawal Itunu Temitope, Sanamo Alla Daniel, Udeh Felix Monday, Musa Mutalib and Unege Evans Icibor, while three other suspects, Sarki Mubarak Salami; Abdullahi Aliyu (aka Aboki); and Monday Anwal, are now on the run and wanted by NDLEA.
Meanwhile, NDLEA said its operatives on Sunday, 29th October, intercepted yet another businessman, 50-year-old Nwokolo Ifeanyi Anthony, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, NAIA, Abuja, during the outward clearance of Air France flight AF 878 to Amsterdam, Netherlands, via Paris, France, at the boarding gate and was body scanned, with the result turned out to be positive for illicit drug ingestion.
According to Babafemi, the suspect who travelled from Lagos to board the flight was subsequently kept under observation for some days, during which he excreted a total of 86 pellets of heroin weighing 1.330 kilograms.
Announcing further interceptions and seizures made by the agency, Babafemi said: “Similarly, NDLEA operatives of the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation, DOGI, attached to courier firms on Monday 30th October intercepted 22 parcels of cocaine concealed in the walls of a carton containing sewn local fabrics popularly called Aso Oke, heading to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
“Meanwhile, NDLEA operatives have arrested three blind men operating an illicit drug ring between Lagos and Kano, while another blind member of the syndicate is still at large. The lid was blown off the group following the arrest of a blind suspect, Adamu Hassan, 40, along Gwagwalada expressway Abuja with 12kgs of skunk on his way from Lagos to Kano on Saturday, 28th October. Investigations, however, established that he was totally oblivious to the contents of the bag handed to him to deliver in Kano.
“Follow-up operations then led to the arrest of the arrowhead of the syndicate, Bello Abubakar, 45, who is also blind. In his statement, Bello, who is married with five children, said he has been living in Lagos for 30 years but started the illicit drug business five years ago.
“Another suspect, Muktar Abubakar, 59, who is equally blind, has been living in Lagos for 40 years and married to three wives with 14 children. Both Muktar Abubakar and Bello Abubakar are joint owners of the business, while the third suspect, Akilu Amadu, 25, also blind, equally contributes money to the criminal trade and is indeed the one who delivered the consignment to Adamu at the motor park in Lagos to deliver in Kano. Another blind suspect who is the expected receiver of the consignment in Kano, Mallam Aminu, is currently at large.
“While operatives in Osun on Saturday 4th November stormed the Obada sawmill forest in Owena-Ijesa, Oriade LGA where they arrested a suspect, Monday Sylvester, 37, on a 6.01 hectares of cannabis farm which was destroyed and 489.8kgs already processed plant recovered, their colleagues in Edo raided a trans-loading point inside Avbiosi forest, Owan West LGA where 603 kilograms of the illicit substance were seized.
“Also, NDLEA officers in Ogun state on Friday, 3rd November, recovered a Toyota Sienna bus from a ditch at Ajebo Area, along the Lagos-Ibadan expressway. A search of the vehicle led to the seizure of 460kgs of the same substance, while a total of 116.5kgs of cannabis sativa belonging to a suspect at large were seized at Olagunju, Mushin area of Lagos.
Reacting to the development, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd) commended the officers and men of the NAIA, MMIA, Lagos, Osun, Edo and FCT Commands as well as those of DOGI, for the arrests and seizures of the past week.
Marwa charged them and their compatriots across the country to remain focused as the Agency expands its operations against drug cartels.
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