Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a 74-year-old man at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, after discovering 11 kilograms of cocaine concealed in his luggage as he prepared to travel to the United Kingdom.
The suspect, identified as Ikwuakalom Nwakoro Emeka, was apprehended at the airport’s departure hall on Saturday while attempting to board a British Airways flight BA082 to Heathrow, London.
According to the NDLEA, a search of his luggage revealed blocks of cocaine hidden inside food items, including ground dry pepper, carefully wrapped in foil papers and balloons. The septuagenarian reportedly claimed he was travelling to London for vacation before his arrest.
In a related development in Lagos, NDLEA operatives arrested a woman, Maryam Olalowo, at Ikad Hotel and Suites on Etim Inyang Street in Victoria Island on March 9 while attempting to sell 89 grams of cocaine and 20 grams of Canadian Loud, a strain of cannabis.
The woman was found with her three children, including an infant, at the time of the arrest. She told investigators the drugs belonged to her husband, Ibrahim Olalowo Olatunji, who was later arrested the same day. Investigations revealed that he had previously been arrested, convicted and sentenced to two and a half years imprisonment for a similar offence in 2015.
Further operations in Lagos Island led to the arrest of two suspects, Kalilou Simpara and Saidu Ibrahim, at Ebute Ero, where 68,000 pills of tramadol (250mg and 225mg) were recovered from a truck they were preparing to move to the Benin Republic.
A follow-up raid at Idumota Market on March 11 resulted in the arrest of Nnamdi Cyprian, identified as the owner of the consignment. A search of his shop uncovered a parcel prepared for delivery containing 1,000 tablets of tramadol (250mg).
Another raid at the same market on March 13 led to the arrest of Nwanosike Kelvin, from whose shop 47,500 ampoules of pentazocine injection were recovered.
In Kano State, a 42-year-old suspect, Magaji Dan Azumi, was arrested at Bebeji with 386 kilograms of skunk on March 10. Similarly, NDLEA operatives in Abuja recovered 282.2 kilograms of skunk from another suspect, Isah Wako, in the Gwagwalada area of the Federal Capital Territory on March 13.
In Edo State, operatives raided the Egwa Forest Reserve in Aduan village, Orhionmwon Local Government Area, where a suspect, Chinedo Odalonu, was arrested. A total of 4,218.96 kilograms of skunk were destroyed on two farms, while 16.5 kilograms were recovered as exhibits.
Meanwhile, no fewer than 339,800 bottles of codeine-based syrup were intercepted in two containers at the Apapa Seaport in Lagos on March 14 during a joint examination by NDLEA officers, men of the Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies. The containers had earlier been watch-listed following intelligence reports about concealed opioids.
The NDLEA also continued its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation campaigns across the country, with advocacy lectures delivered in schools in Nasarawa, Oyo, Delta, Cross River and Edo states, among others.
Commending officers involved in the operations, the NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Mohamed Buba Marwa, praised commands in Abuja, Lagos, Kano, Edo and the Federal Capital Territory for their efforts in curbing drug trafficking while also sustaining drug demand reduction campaigns nationwide.
