Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a suspected drug trafficker, Egwu Phillip Inya, who claims to be a building engineer, while attempting to take delivery of illicit consignments concealed in pressure machines imported from South Africa.
Inya, 42, was nabbed on Monday, December 2, 2024 at Okeyson motor park Enugu when he showed up to collect three units of pressure machines inside which were hidden parcels of Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis, weighing 7.40 kilograms.
The Director, Media & Advocacy of NDLEA, Mr. Femi Babafemi, in a statement made available to thelensng on Sunday disclosed that the consignments arrived at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos import shed on November 29, 2024.
“Following credible intelligence, officers of the MMIA Strategic Command of the Agency had monitored the shipment pass through clearing processes up to a logistics company’s warehouse outside the airport where it was to be collected by the consignee. The importer however changed the point of collection to Enugu at the last minute. As a result, NDLEA operatives in a follow up operation in Enugu arrested Egwu when he showed up to collect the consignments,” the statement noted.
In another operation, no fewer than 511,000 pills of tramadol were recovered from a Siena vehicle at Hildi, Askira Uba way in Adamawa State by NDLEA operatives on patrol along the road in the early hours of Friday, December 6.
Mr. Babafemi stated that the occupants of the vehicle had made a detour on sighting the NDLEA team, and after a distance abandoned the vehicle with the consignments after noticing the operatives were on their trail.
Elsewhere (Ekiti State), two suspects: Olanrewaju Alale, 48, and Babatunde Kayode Ijadahun, 55, were arrested along Ise- Emure road in a J5 bus marked EPE 958 XJ while transporting 108 jumbo bags of cannabis weighing 1,323 kilograms to Owo, Ondo State from where they claimed the consignment will be moved to the North for distribution.
Another suspect, Adekunle Yusuf, 33, was nabbed by NDLEA operatives with 704 kilograms of the same psychoactive substance, concealed in white sacks on Friday, December 6, at Idere road, Igboora, Oyo State.
The statement added: “In Lagos, a grandmother, 65-year-old Ramata Bola Adeyemo was on Friday 6th December arrested by NDLEA operatives at 62 Odunfa street, Lagos Island, where 20.6 litres of codeine-based syrup were recovered from her. Also arrested in Lagos was Alhaji Lawan Manga who was picked at Ogundana Street, Ikeja on Thursday 5th December while 4.7kg cannabis and 1.3kg tramadol were recovered from him.”
Similarly, Commands and formations of the Agency across the country continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation lectures in schools, worship centres, work places and communities among others in the past week.
The activities include: WADA sensitisation lecture to students and staff of Progressive Secondary School, Ado Awaye, Oyo State; Muslim Grammar School, Ede, Osun State; Government Girls College, Maiduguri, Borno State and Community Secondary School, Ogale, Rivers State.
Others are Santa Maria Secondary School, Igogoro, Enugu State; Chiranci Upper Basic Junior Secondary School, Bichi, Kano State while Lagos State Command of NDLEA organised WADA enlightenment lecture for leaders and members of National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Orile, Agege, Lagos, to mention a few.
Reacting to the arrests and seizures, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa commended the officers and men of MMIA, Adamawa, Ekiti, Lagos, and Oyo Commands of the Agency.
Gen. Marwa said that their operational successes and those of their compatriots across the country, especially their balanced approach to drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction efforts are well appreciated.
