NDLEA uncovers new Thailand-Nigeria drug route, seizes N4.4bn Loud at Lagos ports

…101-year-old great-grandmother arrested for selling cannabis; cocaine hidden in fufu intercepted

By: Michael Michael

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has uncovered a new maritime route being exploited by international drug syndicates to smuggle synthetic cannabis into Nigeria, following the seizure of 1.49 tonnes of “Loud” worth more than N4.4 billion at the Apapa and Lekki ports in Lagos.

The consignments, shipped from Thailand, mark the agency’s first recorded seizure of illicit drugs trafficked into Nigeria from the Southeast Asian country through the maritime corridor, raising fresh concerns over the emergence of Nigeria as a destination and transit point for international drug trafficking networks.

The breakthrough was part of a nationwide series of operations by NDLEA operatives between August 15 and 22, which also resulted in the destruction of 10 tonnes of cannabis, interception of cocaine concealed inside edible cassava flour popularly known as fufu, and the arrest of a 101-year-old woman allegedly involved in retail cannabis sales.

At the Apapa Port, NDLEA operatives, working with the Nigeria Customs Service and other stakeholders, discovered 1,090.5 kilogrammes of Thai Loud concealed in a container declared to contain dry fish, rice, vehicle spare parts, turmeric soap and inverter batteries.

The consignment, examined on Friday, August 21, according to a statement on Sunday by the spokesman of the anti-narcotics agency, Femi Babafemi, was packed in 54 cartons containing 2,181 sachets of 500 grammes each.

Babafemi said at the Lekki Deep Sea Port, another container under NDLEA surveillance was jointly examined last Wednesday. Four of seven pallets wrapped in black nylon were found to contain 400 kilogrammes of Thai Loud, packed in 96 cartons comprising 400 parcels.

The remaining three pallets contained 798 rims of A4 paper, which investigators said had been used as a cover for the illicit consignment.

Both containers had been loaded at the Port of Laem Chabang in Thailand, exposing what the NDLEA described as a new trafficking route being exploited by international drug syndicates.

The latest seizures came amid a string of operations across several states, highlighting the expanding scale and sophistication of illicit drug trafficking networks operating through Nigeria’s ports, borders, waterways and inland routes.

In one of the most unusual arrests recorded during the operations, NDLEA operatives in Ogun State arrested a 101-year-old great-grandmother, Esther Ogunmabo, at Ilisan on Saturday, August 15, with 90 grammes of skunk packaged in retail sachets.

The centenarian reportedly told investigators that she sold the cannabis to residents in the area after her provisions shop was destroyed by fire.

She further claimed that one of her daughters, who lives in Lagos, arranged for supplies to be delivered to her every four days, which she then sold in small quantities.

Following the arrest, NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (retd.), directed that the elderly woman be granted bail and placed on counselling because of her advanced age.

Her daughter, however, was arrested in connection with the alleged drug dealing.

In Akwa Ibom, NDLEA operatives intercepted a wooden boat on the high seas lastbFriday, following intelligence that illicit drugs were being transported to fishing settlements in Cameroon.

Three suspects were arrested aboard the vessel, which was heading towards Ine Isu, Ine Mbah and Ine Ikot Itie Udung fishing ports in Cameroon.

They were identified as Eekpo, 29; Otobong Etukudoh, 33; and Kingsley John, 27.

According to Babafemi, Eekpo was found with 1.120 kilogrammes of skunk, while Etukudoh had 42.06 kilogrammes of the substance.

John was arrested with 435 grammes of skunk and 20 grammes of cocaine cleverly concealed inside a large wrap of edible cassava fufu.

A total of 42.622 kilogrammes of illicit drugs was recovered from the three suspects.

In Ondo State, NDLEA operatives destroyed 10,000 kilogrammes of skunk cultivated across four hectares during a raid on a cannabis farm in Ijare forest, Ifedore Local Government Area.

The operation followed the arrest of three suspected cannabis cultivators at the same location on August 16.

In another operation in the state, 210 kilogrammes of skunk and a Toyota Camry were recovered at Ita-Ogbolu, Akure North Local Government Area. The vehicle, with registration number AGL 223 JH, allegedly belongs to Sylvester Anthony, who remains at large.

In the Federal Capital Territory, operatives intercepted three waybill packages containing 24,410 tramadol capsules inside a Hummer bus travelling from Enugu to Zuba on Saturday.

A follow-up operation in Niger State led to the arrest of the alleged owner of the consignment, 28-year-old Sunday Eze, in Kontagora. He was subsequently transferred to Abuja.

Other major seizures included 1.325 kilogrammes of methamphetamine and cannabis recovered from a Toyota Starlet intercepted along the Ogbomosho-Ilorin Expressway in Kwara State. A 22-year-old suspect, Muhammadu Usman, was arrested.

In Oyo State, a 65-year-old woman, Adebayo Kaosarat, was arrested at Akobo-Ojuirin, Ibadan, with 1.795 kilogrammes of Scottish Loud, 1.66 kilogrammes of tramadol, 600 grammes of codeine syrup, 125 grammes of diazepam and 50 grammes of flunitrazepam.

In Kano, NDLEA operatives recovered 73.3kg of skunk from 31-year-old Chibuzor Madueke during a raid along Hadeija Road.

At Seme, Lagos, three members of the same family—Nasiru Tijjani, 52; Moshood Tijjani, 27; and Salami Tijjani, 27—were arrested at Ashipa, near the border, with 48kg of skunk.

In Abia State, operatives recovered 14.4kg of Loud, 2.3kg of Colorado, 386 grams of tramadol and 134 grams of Rohypnol from the residence of 36-year-old Ikechukwu Anthony Iwuno at Umuobia Olokoro, Umuahia South Local Government Area.

Beyond the seizures and arrests, NDLEA Commands and formations across the country also continued their War Against Drug Abuse sensitisation campaigns in schools, religious institutions, workplaces and communities.

The agency conducted awareness programmes in Kano, Oyo, Kebbi, Taraba and Edo, while the Idiroko Special Area Command in Ogun State paid a WADA advocacy visit to the Chairman of Ipokia Local Government Area, Johnson Avoseh.

Marwa commended officers and men of the Ogun, Apapa, Lekki, Seme, Akwa Ibom, Ondo, Oyo, Kwara, Kano, Abia and FCT Commands for the operations.

He urged them and their colleagues nationwide to sustain what he described as the agency’s balanced approach to drug control, combining enforcement operations with prevention, public enlightenment, counselling and community engagement.

NDLEA uncovers new Thailand-Nigeria drug route, seizes N4.4bn Loud at Lagos ports