Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, have arrested several suspected drug traffickers, including a 60-year-old man, during coordinated operations carried out across different parts of the country.
The arrests and seizures took place in Anambra, Kwara, Lagos, Kogi, and Nasarawa states as the agency intensified efforts to combat illegal drug trafficking and distribution.
Details of the operations were contained in a statement released on Sunday by the NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi.
According to the statement, operatives acting on credible intelligence tracked a suspect identified as Romanus Nwabara to Akpaka Forest in Onitsha, Anambra State, where he was arrested on Wednesday.
NDLEA said officers recovered 250 grams of skunk packaged in retail sachets from the suspect.
In another operation in Anambra State, officers raided the Ogbunike area and arrested a 25-year-old physically challenged suspect, Amos Kenneth.
The agency said he was found with 160.3 grams of Tramadol, Diazepam pills, Exol 5, and 176.93 grams of skunk.
In Kwara State, NDLEA operatives on patrol along the Bode Saadu axis intercepted a commercial vehicle and reportedly discovered 6.3 kilograms of skunk hidden inside a brown school bag belonging to a passenger identified as Usman Salisu.
One of the agency’s biggest operations took place in Lagos, where a Special Operations Unit raided a mansion located at 36 African Lane, Lekki Phase 1, allegedly being used as a storage facility for illicit drugs.
During the raid, officers recovered 4,000 parcels of Loud, a potent strain of imported cannabis, weighing 2,326 kilograms.
The agency estimated the street value of the seized drugs at more than N5.8 billion.
NDLEA also recovered two Mercedes-Benz buses and several designer sachets allegedly used for repackaging and retail distribution of the drugs.
Elsewhere, officers arrested Emmanuel Osita Okeke in Nyanya Karu, Nasarawa State, with 129 kilograms of skunk.
Another operation along the Okene-Lokoja highway in Kogi State led to the interception of a commuter bus travelling to Abuja.
A search of the vehicle reportedly uncovered 76 jumbo bags of skunk weighing 766 kilograms, while three suspects — Mathew Omohove, Ebuka Desmond, and Babangida Musa — were arrested in connection with the seizure.
In Lagos, NDLEA operatives also raided a makeshift skuchies production facility in the Ijora Badia area.
Two suspects, Bose Jamiu and Gbenga Gege, were allegedly caught preparing the illicit mixture by combining cannabis with other substances.
Authorities said 270 litres of already processed skuchies and 106 grams of Tramadol were recovered during the operation.
Reacting to the operations, NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Mohamed Buba Marwa, commended officers involved in the raids and seizures.
He also encouraged commands across the country to sustain the agency’s ongoing crackdown on drug trafficking while continuing public sensitization campaigns against substance abuse.
