By Femi Babafemi (Director, Media & Advocacy, NDLEA Abuja)
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, have raided two clandestine drug stores in Lagos where a pregnant woman Eze Joy Chioma was arrested with 1,442 kilograms of imported skunk while four men including a 62-year-old Basset Emmanuel were arrested with 182,000 tablets of Tramadol.
The 27-year-old Chioma Eze was arrested on Friday 17th Dec when operatives raided her store and home in Ojo area of Lagos while another suspect, Michael Oroke was also nabbed with 29kg of the illicit drug in the same location.
The previous day, 16th Dec, operatives had equally raided a hideout in Abule-egba area of the state where Basset Emmanuel, Ezekwem Lawrence, Mohammed Aliyu, and Suwidi Isiaku were arrested with 182,000 tablets of Tramadol 225mg.
In similar raids across eight other states of Rivers, Kogi, Benue, Adamawa, Anambra, Edo, Ekiti and Ondo, over 4,000 kilograms of assorted illicit drugs were seized. On Saturday 18th Dec, during a routine stop and search exercise along Aba/Port Harcourt expressway, by Obigbo, operatives intercepted a consignment of Tramadol in a commercial Toyota Hiace bus, with a waybill addressed to one Shadrach Udechukwu. A follow up operation led to Udechukwus arrest and different quantities of Heroin, Cocaine, Methamphetamine, Cannabis Sativa, Tramadol, Exol-5, Swinol, and Diazepam recovered from him.
In Kogi state, one Timi Sunday was arrested with 95.945kg of cannabis at Egba town, and Musa Sani with 10.5kg cannabis along Okene-Lokoja highway, while Yaro Bala was arrested with 65kg cannabis on the same road.
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No fewer than 20,000 capsules of Tramadol coming from Onitsha, Anambra state were seized in Otukpo, Benue and a suspect arrested, while in Adamawa, a search operation in a house at Ajiya street, Jimeta led to the arrest of a female suspect, Maryam Yunusa with 16 pinches of Cocaine.
A raid at Success line, Marine modern market, Onitsha led to the seizure of 234kg cannabis and a suspect arrested, while in Edo state Francis Eferi was arrested in Okpuje, Owan west LGA with 481kg cannabis and Emmanuel Amu with 81kg cannabis at Sobe.
In Ekiti, 1,420kg cannabis was recovered from Ara in Ikole LGA, while in Akure, Ondo state, operatives arrested one Mrs. Grace Henry in her residence at Itamo Igoba, with 573kg cannabis. In other parts of the state, 450kg cannabis was seized along Ipele-Idoani road, and 420.5kg cannabis at Ogkogu camp, Ipele, both in Owo LGA.
Chairman/Chief Executive of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd) commended the officers and men of the 9 state commands for their resilience and charged them not to relent.
