By The New Diplomat Crime Desk
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has revealed that its operatives successfully intercepted various quantities of cocaine and opioids concealed in sanitary pads and hair cream for shipping.
This was disclosed in a statement issued on Sunday by the NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi.
According to Babafemi, the consignments came from three courier firms in Lagos State and were headed to South Africa, the United Kingdom, Ireland and Cyprus.
The statement reads in part: “In one of the logistics companies, not less than 30 parcels of cocaine weighing 1.1 kilograms were concealed in hair cream containers were recovered by NDLEA officers of the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation (DOGI) during an examination of cargoes going to Ireland on Tuesday 3rd September 2024.
“Another consignment of 24 parcels of cocaine weighing 862 grams also hidden in hair cream containers meant for delivery in the UK was equally intercepted at the same company on Friday 6th September.
“In the same vein, a total of 525 pills of tramadol 225mg and ecstasy (MDMA) concealed in ladies’ sanitary pads going to Cyprus were seized at another courier firm in Lagos by NDLEA operatives on Tuesday 3rd September, while a shipment of 200 ampoules of promethazine injection and pentazocine injection hidden in food items and herbs heading to London, UK, was also seized by operatives on Wednesday 4th September.
“Operatives equally intercepted another consignment of tramadol 225mg buried in granulated melon that came from Cameroon and was going to South Africa on Friday 6th September.
“No fewer than 550,000 pills of tramadol were also intercepted at the Port Harcourt International Airport, Port Harcourt on Monday 2nd September during a joint examination of a cargo that came from Delhi, India, with men of the Nigerian Customs Service while a suspect was already arrested in connection with the seizure.”
Also, Babafemi confirmed that the operatives of the agency and men of the Nigerian Army raided three camps inside the Ise-Ekiti forest reserve, in the Ise/Orun LGA and destroyed over 100,000 kilograms of cannabis spread across 51 hectares of farmland on September 3 and 4.
He added that the operatives arrested two suspects, identified as Bala Musa and Danladi Muhammad, on September 6 along Toro-Jos road, Bauchi State.
The suspects were allegedly with 305kg of cannabis concealed in a false compartment of a J5 bus marked YLA 682 XM when they were arrested.
Another suspect, Aminu Ayuba, was arrested in possession of 18 kilograms of cannabis at Makarfi town
Babafemi continued: “Two others identified as Umar Usman, 40, and Zubairu Kabiru, 45, were arrested along the Zaria- Kaduna highway in possession of 1300 tablets of tramadol on the same day.
“In Osun state, a raid of the home of a drug kingpin, Mayowa Abayomi Awe (a.k.a Bishop) in Ilesa on September 4 led to the seizure of 43grams of crack cocaine, 23grams of methamphetamine, 17.126kg cannabis and a locally made pistol.”
