A 74-year-old grandpa, Ikwuakalom Nwakoro Emeka, discovered to have concealed a large consignment of cocaine in foil papers and balloons in his luggage, was on Saturday, March 16, arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA), Abuja.
The septuagenarian, who claimed he was travelling to London, United Kingdom for vacation, was arrested by NDLEA officers at the departure hall of the Abuja airport while attempting to board a British Airways flight BA082 to Heathrow London.
Confirming this in a statement on Sunday, March 15, the NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, stated that during a search of the grandfather’s luggage, blocks of cocaine weighing 11 kilogrammes were discovered inside food items, including ground dry pepper, carefully wrapped in foil papers and balloons.
In Lagos State, NDLEA operatives, while acting on credible intelligence in the early hours of Monday, March 9, also arrested a woman, Mrs. Maryam Olalowo at Ikad Hotel and Suites, on Etim Inyang Street, Victoria Island, while attempting to sell 89 grammes of cocaine and 20 grammes of Canadian Loud, a strain of cannabis.
At the time of her arrest, the woman was found with her three children, including an infant, the NDLEA spokesman disclosed.
“She confessed that the illicit drugs belong to her husband, Ibrahim Olalowo Olatunji, who was later taken into custody the same day, while his wife was immediately set free,” Babafemi said.
During interrogation, the husband confirmed ownership of the illicit drugs, while further investigation revealed that he had previously been arrested, convicted, and sentenced to two and a half years imprisonment for a similar offence in 2015.
In another interdiction operation, NDLEA operatives arrested two suspects – Kalilou Simpara and Saidu Ibrahim – at Ebetu Ero, Lagos Island where they recovered 68,000 pills of Tramadol 250mg and 225mg after they had loaded the exhibits into their truck and preparing to transport them to Republic of Benin on Monday, March 9.
A follow-up operation was reportedly conducted on Wednesday, March 11, at Idumota market, Lagos Island, where the actual owner of the consignment, Nnamdi Cyprian, was arrested.
A search of his shop led to the discovery of a parcel already prepared for waybill delivery, containing 1,000 tablets of Tramadol 250mg.
Another raid at Idumota market on Friday, March 23, led to the arrest of Nwanosike Kelvin and the recovery of 47,500 ampoules of pentazocine injection from his shop.
While a 42-year-old Magaji Dan Azumi was arrested at Bebeji area of Kano with 386-kilogramme skunk on Tuesday, March 10, NDLEA officers in Abuja recovered 282.2kg skunk from another suspect, Isah Wako, aged 42, in Gwagwalada area of the FCT on Friday, March 13.
In Edo State, NDLEA operatives raided the Egwa forest reserve in Aduan village, Orhionmwon Local Government Area where a 33-year-old suspect, Chinedo Odalonu, was apprehended. A total of 4,218.96kg skunk were destroyed on two farms with 16.5kg of same substance recovered.
No fewer than 339,800 bottles of codeine-based syrup were intercepted in two containers at the Apapa seaport in Lagos on Saturday 14th March during a joint examination of the shipments by NDLEA officers, men of Customs and other security agencies.
The containers had earlier being on the watchlist of the NDLEA following credible intelligence on concealment of opioids in them.
The War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) social advocacy activities by NDLEA Commands equally continued across the country in the past week.
Some of them include: WADA sensitisation lecture delivered to students and staff of ERCC Secondary School, Duguru, Nasarawa; Awoyemi Commercial High School, Okeho, Oyo; Ogunu Primary School, Ogunu, Delta;
Seven Angels University Secondary School, Ikot Enobong, Calabar, Cross River; and Edo National College, Iguobazuwa, Edo State, while the Zone 11 Command of NDLEA paid a WADA advocacy visit to Governor Francis Ogbonna Nwifuru of Ebonyi state, among others.
While commending the officers and men of NAIA, Lagos, Kano, Edo and FCT Commands of the Agency for the arrests and seizures of the past week, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd) also praised their counterparts in all the commands across the country for pursuing a fair balance between their drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction efforts.
