Destroys 11, 636.185kg of cannabis in Edo forest, intercepts three trailer loads of opioids
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a 75-year-old grandpa, Jibril Audu, with 7.5kg of cannabis at Oke-asa village, Ijero-Ekiti, Ekiti State, during a raid.
He was arrested on Friday, May 10, while a 70-year-old grandma, Tikwase Nytor, was nabbed with 15.6kg of the same substance on Thursday, May 9, during a raid at Achusa and International Market Road, Makurdi, Benue State.
The agency also intercepted three trailer loads of opioids, comprising 3,450,000 million pills and 344,000 bottles of codeine syrup at Abule Ado, in Amuwo Odofin Local Council of Lagos State, and arrested three suspects in connection with the seizure.
The multi-billion naira consignments were loaded into two 40-ft container trucks and another 20-ft truck at the AML bonded terminal, Abule-Osun, near the International Trade Fair complex before heading to a large warehouse at Abule-Ado, where NDLEA officers eventually arrested the suspects.
Confirming the development in a statement yesterday, spokesperson for the agency, Femi Babafemi, said those arrested include the warehouse agent, Cosmas Obiajulu, 51; Ridwan Balogun, 25, and Banjo Tayo, 30, both drivers of two of the trucks, while the third driver jumped off to escape arrest.
In the same vein, NDLEA operatives, on Tuesday, May 7, arrested a suspect, Nwankwo Ejike, in the Coker area of Lagos where 100 litres of Codeine syrup were recovered. The same day, 60 litres of the same substance were seized from Clinton Akinye in the area.
Also, about 37.5kg of Cannabis sativa loaded in a Toyota Camry car was recovered from another suspect, Adegbola Segun, 47, when the car was intercepted at the Mile 12 area of Lagos on Monday May 6.
Another consignment of opioids consisting of 59,106 pills of Tramadol and different quantities of Codeine syrup and Rohypnol being taken across the border to Garua, Cameroon, was intercepted by NDLEA officers on Monday, May 6, along Mubi-Yola road, Adamawa State.
Two suspects: Abubakar Auwal, 39, and Adamu Abubakar, 25, (a.k.a Bamanga), a trans-border trafficker, who was to take the consignment from Mubi across to Cameroon, were promptly arrested.
In Edo State, NDLEA operatives on A, May 11, raided the Iguiye forest in Ovia North East Local Council where 11, 636.185kg cannabis was destroyed on three farms measuring 4.654,474 hectares, while additional 188kg of the same psychoactive substance was recovered and a suspect, Itah Nyong, was arrested during the overnight operation.
