A 36-year-old businessman, Ibeanusi Solomon Nosike, from Onitsha, Anambra State, was arrested at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos on August 8, 2024. After 12 days under the National Drugs Law and Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) surveillance, he excreted 68 wraps of cocaine.
Nosike was en route to Vietnam via a Qatar Airways flight from Abuja when he was apprehended. In another operation, a 54-year-old businessman, Paul Okwuy Mbadugha, was arrested at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja on August 12, 2024. He excreted 88 wraps of cocaine, weighing 1.710 kilograms, after four days under observation. Mbadugha was also bound for Vietnam.
NDLEA operatives at the Lagos airport intercepted a consignment of 1.20 kilograms of cannabis concealed in a package destined for Dubai. This led to the arrest of Aligbo Chukwudi Jacob, a businessman from Onitsha, on August 17, 2024.
Also, five female drug traffickers were arrested at the Seme border on their return from Ghana. The group, led by 42-year-old Olaribigbe Bashirat Feyisara, was found with 14 packs of a potent strain of cannabis known as “Loud,” weighing 6.97 kilograms.
On August 23, 2024, NDLEA operatives intercepted two containers at the Tincan seaport in Lagos containing 1,596 cartons of codeine-based syrup, with a street value of over N2.2 billion.
The containers arrived from Mundra port in India. In Edo State, two women, Martha Owotorofa and Odion Uzordinma, were arrested for selling illicit drugs online. Owotorofa was found with Canadian Loud, while Uzordinma was caught with cookies and cakes laced with illegal substances.
Further arrests included Godwill Davidson in Lagos, who was found with large quantities of codeine syrup and pills, and Yahaya Ibrahim in Kogi State, who was caught with 42,000 tramadol pills. In Oyo State, two suspects were arrested with 267.5 liters of “skuchies,” a drug-laced beverage, and Canadian Loud.
The NDLEA continues its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) campaign through sensitization programs in schools, workplaces, and communities across Nigeria. The agency’s leadership commended the officers involved in these operations, encouraging them to maintain their dedication to drug control.
This comprehensive report highlights the NDLEA’s relentless efforts to curb drug trafficking and abuse, showcasing a series of successful operations that have led to significant arrests and drug seizures across the country.
