NDLEA intercepts US, Saudi Arabia, Poland, Italy-bound cocaine, opioid shipments in prayer beads, others

By: Michael Mike

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have thwarted desperate bids by some drug trafficking organisations (DTO) to move illicit consignments such as Cocaine, Tramadol, Loud, Molly and others concealed in prayer beads, packs of board games, female cloths to the United States of America, Saudi Arabia, Italy, Poland, and United Arab Emirates through logistics firms and the Lagos airport.

A statement on Sunday by the spokesman of the anti-narcotics agency, Femi Babafemi said at least, two suspects behind some of the aborted missions at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos have already been arrested. One of them is a 43-year-old businesswoman, Jakpor May who was nabbed at the Gate ‘C’ departure hall of the Lagos airport while attempting to board an Air France flight to Italy on Saturday 8th March 2025.

Babafemi said when she was searched, 190 parcels of tramadol 225mg and another parcel of skunk, a strain of cannabis, were recovered from her luggage. In her statement, she claimed that she bought the drugs herself, with the intention to resell them in Italy.

He said at the export shed of the Lagos airport, NDLEA officers last Tuesday arrested a 60-year-old suspect, Yahaya Ayinla, while attempting to ship a cargo containing cloths used to conceal 400 grammes of skunk going to New York, United States of America.

Babafemi disclosed that at the some logistics companies in Lagos, efforts by drug traffickers to export over two kilogrammes of Loud, Molly, Tramadol 365mg, 225mg hidden in Vitamin C bottles and female cloths to the US were frustrated by NDLEA operatives of the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation, DOGI.

The spokesman added that other shipments of 230 grammes of cocaine concealed in prayer beads, soles of locally made shoes and packs of board games heading to Saudi Arabia, Poland and UAE were equally intercepted between Monday 10th and Wednesday 12th March.

In Kano, a total of 727 blocks of compressed skunk weighing 479 kilogrammes were recovered from a 40-year-old suspect Hassan Haruna who was arrested by NDLEA operatives at Chalawa area of the state last Wednesday, while no fewer than 58,300 pills of tramadol were intercepted along Kabba-Obajana highway, Kogi state in a commercial bus coming from Lagos en-route Abuja last Tuesday.

Raid operations in Kachia, Kaduna state last Thursday led to the arrest of Idris Hamza, 21, with 4,900 pills of tramadol 225mg seized from him, just as a similar exercise in Hayin Banki area of Kaduna North local government area, last Friday resulted in the arrest of 25-year-old Aminu Magaji from whom 2,900 tablets of tramadol 225mg were recovered.

He said while a total of 40,200 tablets of tramadol 225mg were recovered from the duo of Olowoko Faruk and Akeem Ridwan along Ilorin – Jebba expressway, Bode Saadu, Kwara state last Friday, NDLEA operatives equally seized 21,700 capsules of same opioid from a suspect Salisu Usman along Eiyenkorin expressway, Ilorin last Thursday.

In Taraba state, NDLEA officers last Friday arrested Polycarp Adeku, 35, at Bente road, Kurmi local government area, with 15.77 kilogrammes skunk, while in Osun state, operatives last Thursday, intercepted a commercial bus marked SGB 564 YS coming from Idumota, Lagos Island in front of King University, Ode-omu, with a total of 48.7 kilogrammes Ghanaian Loud, Colorado and Canadian Loud, all strains of cannabis. Not less than nine suspects have been arrested in connection with the seizure in Osogbo and Ile-Ife during follow up operations.

A 58-year-old suspect Ade Esan (aka Pastor) was last Tuesday arrested along Gwagwalada expressway, FCT Abuja with 27,800 pills of tramadol 225mg, while another suspect Usman Mohammed, 26, was nabbed same day with various quantities of skunk and cocaine at Wuse zone 3 area of Abuja. In Abia state, NDLEA operatives last Saturday raided the Ntigha community, Isiala-Ngwa North local government area, where a 34-year-old suspect Chinaza Nwogu (aka Young Money) was arrested with 274 grammes of heroin, 141 grammes of methamphetamine, 2.931 kilogrammes of cannabis sativa, 4 grammes of cocaine and N753,015 monetary exhibit.

Meanwhile, 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.

The Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (Rtd) while commending the officers and men of MMIA, DOGI, Kano, Kwara, Kaduna, Taraba, Abia, Osun, and FCT commands of the agency for the arrests and seizures, stated that their operational successes and those of their compatriots across the country especially their balanced approach to drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction efforts are well appreciated.

NDLEA intercepts US, Saudi Arabia, Poland, Italy-bound cocaine, opioid shipments in prayer beads, others