Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have intercepted more than 1.3 million tramadol and opioid pills, as well as over six tonnes of cannabis, in operations across eight states and the FCT, with the seizures valued at over ₦3.4 billion.
The agency disclosed on Sunday that its operatives also arrested a suspected drug trafficker, Innocent Ekpe, who allegedly impersonated a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) and used a forged identity card to evade security checks while transporting illicit drugs across the country.
The biggest seizure came at the Tin-Can Island Port, Lagos, where NDLEA officers uncovered 603.75kg of Canadian Loud worth ₦1.81 billion hidden inside a container shipped from Canada. In Delta State, Ekpe and an accomplice were arrested with 292.48kg of skunk along the Benin-Onitsha Expressway.
In another major operation, officers arrested two suspects on the Abaji-Abuja Highway and recovered more than 1.1 million tramadol tablets, codeine syrup, methamphetamine and other opioids concealed in eight sacks. In Edo State, a mechanic was arrested after 48kg of Canadian Loud and methamphetamine were recovered from his workshop.
The agency also recorded seizures in Lagos, Gombe, Imo and Ondo states, including the destruction of a two-hectare cannabis farm where about 5,000kg of skunk was recovered. Three suspects were equally arrested in Niger State with locally fabricated firearms and ammunition.
NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, Brig.-Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd), commended the officers involved in the operations and urged commands nationwide to sustain intelligence-led enforcement and anti-drug sensitisation campaigns under the agency’s War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) initiative.
