The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has made a significant arrest at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos state.
A 35-year-old woman, Chidinma Chinenye Agbazue, was detained by NDLEA officers for allegedly attempting to export 20 parcels of cannabis sativa, weighing 10.70 kilograms.
The illegal substance was concealed within African salad, commonly known as Abacha, and dried vegetables. The arrest took place during the screening process for outbound passengers on Qatar Airways bound for Doha, Qatar.
According to Femi Babafemi, the Director of Media and Advocacy at NDLEA Headquarters Abuja, the interception occurred on Thursday, March 28th. It was a collaborative effort between NDLEA officers stationed at the Lagos airport and the Department of State Security.
Preliminary investigations revealed that Chidinma, who is based in Qatar, had returned to Nigeria in December for Christmas and was staying at the Club Dice Hotel in Ikotun, Lagos. It was there that she was allegedly handed the contraband for trafficking back to Qatar.
In a related development, NDLEA operatives in Lagos arrested two suspects, Monday Okeke and Chigozie Emeka, on Tuesday, March 26th. They were found in possession of 842,560 pills of opioids, particularly tramadol, along with 15 liters of codeine syrup and 596 grammes of Molly. Okeke attempted to bribe NDLEA officers with N5 million, but his efforts were unsuccessful.
In Bayelsa state, NDLEA operatives thwarted an attempt by three suspects—Ebuka Eze, Ugochukwu Okoro, and Kingsley Uzim – to smuggle opioids weighing a total of 73.425 kilograms into the creeks of Southern Ijaw area.
The drugs, including codeine, molly, tramadol, and diazepam, were concealed in jumbo sacks and transported to the Swali jetty in Yenagoa.
Furthermore, NDLEA operations in various states led to several arrests and significant drug seizures. In Abia state, Nwachukwuu Chinedu was apprehended with 46.65 kilogrammes of cannabis and various quantities of tramadol, methamphetamine, and rohypnol. In Ondo state, 127.5 kilograms of cannabis were recovered along the Isua/Kabba road, and a female suspect, Chinasa Christopher, was arrested with 400 bottles of codeine syrup in Kano.
Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd), commended the officers and commands involved in these operations. He also praised the intensified efforts in advocacy against drug abuse, particularly highlighting sensitization lectures conducted in various institutions and communities across the country.
