The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has seized cocaine, Canadian Loud and large quantities of opioids with a combined estimated street value exceeding ₦10 billion during a series of intelligence-driven operations carried out in Lagos and other parts of the country.
According to the agency, operatives arrested a 55-year-old businessman, Onuigbo Ndubisi Chinedu, for allegedly attempting to export 3.30 kilograms of cocaine concealed inside the walls of cartons containing food items bound for the United Kingdom.
The cocaine shipment was intercepted at the export section of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, leading to the arrest of three cargo agents linked to the consignment. Further investigations later led to the arrest of another suspect who delivered the shipment and eventually to the alleged leader of the drug trafficking network.
The agency said Onuigbo was apprehended while allegedly making arrangements to send another cocaine shipment to the United Kingdom.
In a separate operation, NDLEA operatives arrested a 31-year-old entrepreneur, Emmanuella Chukwu-Edo, at her residence in Surulere after intercepting a 2.80-kilogram consignment of Canadian Loud, a synthetic cannabis strain, which arrived from the United States.
The anti-narcotics agency also confiscated 2.24 million pills of Tapentadol 250mg valued at more than ₦2.2 billion from a shipment imported from India through the Lagos airport.
The seizure followed a joint cargo inspection based on intelligence reports.
In another operation, officials intercepted a shipment of tramadol hidden inside containers of black soap that was being prepared for export to the United Kingdom through a courier company in Lagos.
At the Apapa Seaport, operatives uncovered 4,777 sachets of Canadian Loud weighing 2,388.5 kilograms and valued at over ₦7.1 billion. The illicit drugs were concealed inside three imported vehicles packed in a container.
Outside Lagos, NDLEA operatives arrested a 30-year-old suspect, Mustapha Sani, in Katsina State after recovering 323 rounds of military-grade ammunition, including 7.62mm and 7.6mm cartridges.
The agency said the operations form part of its ongoing efforts to combat drug trafficking and other related criminal activities across the country.
