The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) on Sunday said it has recorded major breakthroughs in its nationwide offensive against drug trafficking and related crimes, intercepting cocaine and opioid consignments concealed in shipment cartons bound for the United Kingdom and Australia.
The agency also said it has recovered 1,989 rounds of military-grade ammunition hidden inside bags of garri along the Abuja-Kaduna highway.
The anti-narcotics agency said the seizures were made during a series of coordinated operations carried out across several states, resulting in multiple arrests, destruction of illicit drug farms and intensified public sensitisation campaigns under its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) initiative.
According to a statement by NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, operatives at a courier company in Lagos on Friday, May 15, intercepted 170 grams of cocaine carefully sealed in cellophane parcels and concealed within the walls of a carton containing clothes destined for Australia.
In another shipment headed for the United Kingdom, NDLEA officers uncovered a large consignment of opioids hidden in a carton. The seized drugs included 200 ampoules of pentazocine injection, 1,100 capsules of tramadol and 100 ampoules of promethazine injection.
The agency also recorded significant successes in Delta State, where operatives raided Ejeonu village in Ukwuani Local Government Area on Sunday, May 10, destroying 27,500 kilograms of skunk spread across 11 hectares of farmland. Officers also recovered 22.9 kilograms of the substance and arrested a 52-year-old suspect, Ifeanyichukwu Peter, during a follow-up operation in Obiaruku.
A similar operation conducted in Orogun village, Ughelli North Local Government Area, on Tuesday, May 12, led to the destruction of another 37,500 kilograms of skunk cultivated on 15 hectares of farmland. NDLEA operatives recovered an additional 55.4 kilograms and arrested a 30-year-old suspect, Godwin Vincent Osadera.
The agency disclosed that the combined operations in Delta State, carried out with support from the military, resulted in the destruction of a total of 65,000 kilograms of skunk.
In Kaduna State, NDLEA operatives recovered 361 kilograms of skunk during a raid in the Dan Magaji area of Zaria on Wednesday, May 13, leading to the arrest of a 42-year-old suspect, Husaini Suleiman.
In a separate operation along the Abuja-Kaduna highway on Tuesday, May 12, officers intercepted a large cache of ammunition concealed inside fresh cassava granules popularly known as garri. The suspect, 35-year-old Abdullahi Hassan, was arrested while transporting 1,989 rounds of RLA 7.62mm ammunition.
NDLEA said both the suspect and the recovered ammunition had been transferred to another security agency for further investigation.
In the Federal Capital Territory, operatives arrested a 29-year-old businessman, Ogadi Peter, who allegedly specialised in producing drug-laced cakes and cookies for social events within Abuja.
Following intelligence reports, officers tracked him to his residence in the Life Camp area, where he was arrested on Monday, May 11. Recovered from him were 800 grams of skunk and 2.70 kilograms of drug-infused cookies.
In Ogun State, NDLEA operatives raided the Ogere axis on Wednesday, May 13, recovering 181 kilograms of skunk from a suspect identified as Aliyu Sani.
Similarly, in Taraba State, officers arrested a 27-year-old suspect, Sufiyanu Mohammed Misa, along the Zaki-Biam road in Wukari Local Government Area on Thursday, May 14, with 105,850 pills of opioids, including tramadol, diazepam and exol-5.
In Oyo State, two suspects: Adeleke Olamide Aliyah, 20, and Aloba Abdulazeez, 25, were arrested on Thursday, May 14, at Challenge II area of Saki town in connection with the seizure of 99 litres of skuchies.
Also in Edo State, NDLEA operatives destroyed 1,388.4175 kilograms of skunk cultivated on two farms during a raid on Friday, May 15, in Ago forest, Orhionmwon Local Government Area.
In Kano State, officers recovered 1.2 kilograms of tramaking 225mg pills concealed inside a 25-litre jerry can of palm oil at Kofar Ruwa motor park on Monday, May 11, following credible intelligence.
On the same day, another suspect, Aminu Isa, 35, was arrested in the Sabuwar Sharada area of Kano with 30.5 kilograms of skunk.
Beyond enforcement activities, the agency said its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) advocacy campaign continued across schools and communities nationwide.
The sensitisation programmes held during the week included lectures delivered to students and staff of The Apostolic Church Model College, Ijokodo, Ibadan; School of Health Technology, Lambata, Niger State; Yewa Junior High School, Agege, Lagos; Government Secondary School, Yardaje, Katsina State; Igogo Commercial High School, Igogo Ekiti; and Government Girls Secondary School, Magwan, Kano State, among others.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Mohamed Buba Marwa, commended officers and personnel of the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation (DOGI) as well as commands in Delta, Kaduna, Oyo, Taraba, Kano, FCT, and Edo States for the successful arrests and seizures recorded during the week.
He also praised officers across the country for maintaining a balanced approach between drug supply reduction operations and drug demand reduction campaigns through sustained advocacy and public enlightenment initiatives.
