By Seun Ibiyemi
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has thwarted an international cocaine trafficking operation with the interception of drug consignments concealed in a local mortar and a specially modified backpack bound for China and Italy, while also seizing 26,000 bottles of codeine syrup and arresting suspected traffickers in coordinated nationwide operations.
The agency said operatives of its Directorate of Operations and General Investigations (DOGI) uncovered the export syndicate at a Lagos logistics company on July 30.
According to the NDLEA, 250 grams of cocaine were expertly concealed inside the base of a locally made mortar packaged for shipment to China, while another 500 grams were hidden in the false bottom of a backpack destined for Italy.
In Rivers State, operatives arrested a 38-year-old suspected drug kingpin, Ugo Gift Okonkwo, at Eagle Island, Port Harcourt, following intelligence-led surveillance.
The suspect was reportedly found with quantities of cannabis, cocaine, methamphetamine, swinol, tramadol and codeine syrup during the operation.
READ ALSO:SERAP issues Tinubu 7-day ultimatum over alleged ₦6.79bn police fraud, missing firearms
In another major interception, NDLEA officers stopped a truck at the DMGS Roundabout in Onitsha, Anambra State, recovering 26,000 bottles of codeine syrup weighing 3,960 kilograms.
The truck, marked XK 131 BDG, was intercepted during a stop-and-search operation, leading to the arrest of its driver, Chinedu Nwanze, 40.
In Delta State, officers also recovered 331.84 kilograms of skunk from a Toyota Sienna bus along the Kwale-Ughelli Expressway.
Further operations in Nasarawa State led to the arrest of 64-year-old Joseph Nwaeke, who was allegedly caught with 68 kilograms of skunk and 29 grams of methamphetamine in the Karu area.
Along the Zaria-Gusau highway in Zamfara State, NDLEA operatives intercepted Sani Umar, 27, with 7,400 tablets of Tramadol 225mg, suspected to have been intended for criminal groups.
Beyond enforcement, the anti-narcotics agency said its commands nationwide sustained the War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) campaign through sensitisation programmes in schools, communities and transport hubs aimed at reducing drug abuse.
Commending the successful operations, NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Mohamed Buba Marwa, praised officers of the affected commands and urged them to sustain the agency’s dual strategy of aggressive drug interdiction and preventive public enlightenment.
