In a massive crackdown on illicit substances, the Nigerian National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has seized a staggering N7 billion worth of codeine, tramadol, and other illicit drugs in various parts of the country. The latest haul brings the total value of seized drugs to over N7 billion in street value.
According to a statement by NDLEA’s Spokesman, Femi Babafemi, operatives of the agency made the arrest during a joint examination of two containers with men of the Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies on October 15. The seized drugs include 162,351 bottles of codeine-based syrup from two containers at the Apapa seaport in Lagos and 7,200,000 pills of Royal 225mg Tapentadol and Carisoprodol worth over N3.6 billion in street value.
The recovered pills and syrups have a street value of over N3.6 billion and were seized from a watch-listed container from India at Port Harcourt, Port Complex, Onne, Rivers. An equally searched container at the port in Onne yielded a total of 337,000 bottles of codeine-based syrup worth over N2.3 billion, which were recovered on Tuesday, October 15 and Thursday, October 17.
In addition to the seizures at the ports, NDLEA operatives also made arrests of suspects in various parts of the country. On Tuesday, October 15, a 33-year-old suspect was arrested along Bauchi-Jos road with 76,600 pills of tramadol concealed in false compartments of his Toyota Sienna vehicle. NDLEA operatives in Ondo state also arrested three suspects at Afo village, where 672kg of marijuana was seized from them.
In Edo state, a raid at Illushi forest in Esan South East LGA led to the destruction of 10,590.36kg of cannabis spread on 4.236144 hectares of farmland. Two suspects, aged 65 and 35, were apprehended during the raid. In Lagos, NDLEA operatives arrested a suspect with 3kg of methamphetamine and 1.90kg of cannabis along Lagos – Ibadan expressway, while 241kg of methamphetamine was recovered at Gbaji, Badagry area of the state.
In a separate operation, a suspected meth cook was arrested at Abule Osun with 265grams of methamphetamine. Different quantities of precursor chemicals for the manufacture of methamphetamine and others were also recovered from him. These seizures and arrests are a testament to the relentless efforts of the NDLEA to rid Nigeria of illicit drugs and ensure a safer society.
