By Deborah Nnamdi
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intensified its crackdown on drug trafficking across the country, intercepting large consignments of opioids concealed in building materials and arresting several suspects, including a 75-year-old man in Ebonyi State and four female drug dealers in separate operations.
A major breakthrough was recorded in Taraba State on Saturday when operatives, acting on intelligence, intercepted a truck carrying building materials from Onitsha, Anambra State, to Jalingo. During a thorough search of the vehicle at Nukkai Timber Shade in Jalingo, officers uncovered a large quantity of illicit drugs hidden beneath the cargo. The truck’s assistant, 22-year-old Buhari Abdullahi, was arrested in connection with the seizure.
Recovered from the vehicle were 320,840 capsules of tramadol, 600 ampoules of pentazocine injection, 4,500 tablets of Rohypnol, and 299 bottles of codeine-based cough syrup, according to the agency.
In Ebonyi State, NDLEA operatives arrested 75-year-old Okebe Samuel in Okposi after allegedly discovering 300 grams of skunk packaged in retail sachets and reportedly intended for sale to young people within the community.
A separate operation in Imo State led to the arrest of 32-year-old Chioma Okeke during a raid on a known drug hub in Umulolo, Orlu. The agency said officers recovered eight kilograms of skunk from the suspect.
In Edo State, operatives raided several notorious drug hotspots across Benin City on June 2, resulting in the arrest of four suspects, including three women. At Uyosa, officers apprehended Chioma Igba, 24, and Precious Ozomah, 22, with 176 grams of skunk, 65 grams of Loud, and five grams of methamphetamine.
Another suspect, Anita Abraham, 21, was arrested along Agbor Road with 95 grams of Scottish Loud and 329 grams of regular Loud. In a separate operation at Upper Mission, Benin City, officers arrested Henry Okey, 43, who was allegedly found in possession of Loud, Colorado, Swinol and methamphetamine.
In Kano State, operatives arrested 19-year-old Saifullahi Lawan in the Kafi area of Madobi on June 4. He was reportedly caught with 40 blocks of skunk weighing a total of 38 kilograms.
Similarly, NDLEA officers in Gombe State intercepted 28-year-old Ugwu Sabastine Ifebuchi near Dantiti Plaza in the Tumfure area on June 1. The suspect was allegedly found with 15,000 capsules of tramadol.
Beyond its enforcement operations, the agency said it continued its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation campaign in schools across the country. The initiative reached students and staff of Holiness Foundation Primary School in Saki, Oyo State; Dorras High School in Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos State; Ado Girls Secondary School in Onitsha, Anambra State; and Army Day Secondary School in Kano State, among others.
Reacting to the latest operations, NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), commended officers and personnel of the Taraba, Ebonyi, Imo, Edo, Kano and Gombe commands for their vigilance and dedication.
Marwa also praised the agency’s personnel nationwide for sustaining a balance between drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction efforts, stressing that the NDLEA remains committed to dismantling drug trafficking networks across the country. He reiterated that traffickers would continue to face the full weight of the law regardless of their age, gender or methods of concealment.
