Over 1.7 million pills of Tramadol and other opioids have been intercepted hidden in indomie noodles packs and others at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, MMIA, Ikeja Lagos as well as in Gombe state.
Also over 600,000 pills of Tramadol weighing 225mg coming from Karachi, Pakistan in two separate shipments on Ethiopian Airlines flights were intercepted by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency NDLEA, at the SAHCO import shed of the Lagos Airport on Monday 12th and Tuesday 13th December, 2022,
Similarly, 5,960 pills of Rohypnol concealed in 60 packs of indomie noodles going to Johannesburg, South Africa were also seized at the SAHCO export shed of the airport on Wednesday 14th December.
NDLEA spokesman Femi Babafemi, who made the disclosure in statement on Sunday, said that a female freight agent, Olaleye Adeola has already been arrested in connection with the noodles consignment.
In a related development, a trader at Balogun market in Lagos Island, Akunne Chibuzor Tochukwu, was on Tuesday 13th Dec arrested in collaboration with the Zone 2 Police Headquarters, Lagos over his attempt to export a Tramadol consignment to Dubai, UAE.
The consignment was seized at the Lagos airport by NDLEA operatives on 25th November while a market labourer, Oke Abosede Ronke, whose services were requested to convey the drug for export had earlier been arrested.
Meanwhile, NDLEA operatives in Lagos on Sunday 11th December, intercepted a truck and a bus conveying 113 jumbo bags of cannabis sativa weighing 4,802.84 kilograms around the VGC estate area of Ajah while three suspects: Taofeek Yusuf; Ifeanyi Okorie and Israel Nwachukwu were arrested in connection with the seizures.
In Gombe state, a total of 1,154,500 pills of Tramadol, Rohypnol and Exol being transported from Onitsha, Anambra state to Gombe by a truck driver, Umar Hassan, 28, were seized on Thursday 15th Dec. at Bye pass area of Gombe by a team of NDLEA officers following credible intelligence.
Also acting on intelligence, operatives in Edo state on Friday 16th Dec intercepted a Honda Ridgeline pick-up vehicle with Reg No BWR 699 CV loaded with 29 bags of Cannabis Sativa weighing 319kgs.
The driver of the vehicle, Alfred Vratombo, 32, was arrested with fake police uniforms, which he was using to deceive security men on the road.
Attempt by a drug dealer, Chucks Kalu, 29, to smuggle into Kano 26kgs of cannabis concealed inside packs of blenders was thwarted by operatives who intercepted the consignment along Abuja-Kaduna express road
Chairman/Chief Executive of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd), the officers and their compatriots across other formations to continue to surpass their past records of achievements.