Operatives of the National Drug Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have successfully seized over 14.4 million pills of tramadol and bottles of codeine syrup valued at more than N13 billion. These seizures were made during three major raids on drug cartels operating in Amuwo Odofin, Idumota, and the Skyway Aviation Handling Company (SAHCO) shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos.
The first operation took place at House 8/10 Hon. Wahuha Avenue, Divine Estate, Ago Palace area of Amuwo Odofin on Sunday, October 29. During this raid, 490,000 pills of tramadol and 81,519 bottles of codeine syrup measuring 4,510,000mls were recovered. On Tuesday, October 31, another operation led NDLEA operatives to a secret warehouse operated by a billionaire Idumota trader, Nwaoha Anayo, in the Onitire, Aguda area of Surulere, where 12.7 million pills of tramadol were discovered.
Additionally, the NDLEA arrested six suspects who were part of a syndicate using their official cover to smuggle illicit drugs through the SAHCO warehouse at the Lagos airport. A total of 1.73 million pills of tramadol were seized from these suspects after weeks of careful planning and execution. The agency is currently searching for three other suspects who are on the run.
In a separate incident at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA) in Abuja, NDLEA operatives intercepted a 50-year-old businessman, Nwokolo Ifeanyi Anthony, during the outward clearance of Air France flight AF 878 to Amsterdam, Netherlands via Paris, France. The suspect was found to have ingested illicit drugs, and subsequent observation led to the excretion of 86 pellets of heroin weighing 1.330 kilograms.
Furthermore, NDLEA operatives attached to courier firms intercepted 22 parcels of cocaine concealed in the walls of a carton containing sewn local fabrics heading to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Meanwhile, the agency also arrested three blind men involved in an illicit drug ring between Lagos and Kano. Investigations revealed that the blind suspects were unaware of the contents of the bags they were asked to deliver.
In other operations, NDLEA operatives raided a cannabis farm in Owena-Ijesa, Oriade Local Council, where they arrested a suspect and recovered processed plants. In Edo, a trans-loading point inside Avbiosi forest was raided, resulting in the seizure of 603 kilograms of illicit substances. Additionally, a Toyota Sienna bus was recovered from a ditch along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, leading to the seizure of 460 kilograms of the same substance. Another seizure of 116.5 kilograms of Cannabis sativa was made in the Mushin area of Lagos.
