The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a Brazil-based Nigerian businessman, Uche Onyekwere, for attempting to smuggle cocaine into Nigeria through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, as the agency recorded the seizure of nearly 10 tonnes of assorted illicit drugs nationwide.
Onyekwere, 47, was apprehended last Thursday at the arrival hall of the Lagos airport during the inward screening of passengers on a South African Airways flight from Brazil via Johannesburg. NDLEA operatives acted on actionable intelligence that flagged him for closer examination.
A body scan conducted on the suspect indicated concealed foreign substances. A subsequent strip search uncovered a large wrap of a white powdery substance, later confirmed to be cocaine, strapped to his right thigh. Further checks revealed two additional wraps hidden inside the soles of the flat shoes he was wearing.
In total, NDLEA officers recovered three wraps of cocaine weighing 1.6 kilogrammes.
During interrogation, the suspect reportedly confessed to purchasing the drugs in Brazil with plans to sell them in Nigeria. He claimed the proceeds were intended to expand his toy business and support the naming ceremony of his newborn child. Onyekwere disclosed that he has lived in São Paulo, Brazil, since 2008.
Meanwhile, NDLEA operatives at the Tincan Seaport, Lagos, intercepted a container shipment last Wednesday, uncovering 55 jumbo bags of Canadian Loud, a potent cannabis strain, weighing 1,183 kilogrammes. The drugs, imported from Montreal, Canada, were concealed inside a Hyundai SUV and a Toyota Matrix vehicle and were discovered during a joint inspection involving NDLEA, the Nigeria Customs Service, and other security agencies.
In Niger State, NDLEA officers intercepted a long-haul truck along the Dei-Dei–Abuja Expressway in the early hours of Tuesday, arresting Andy Chidogu (49), Kenneth Ogene (45), and Sadiq Olanrewaju (27) with 176 bags of skunk cannabis weighing 2,735 kilogrammes, alongside one kilogramme of Colorado, a synthetic cannabis variant.
According to NDLEA spokesman Femi Babafemi, investigations revealed that the truck driver, Ogene, had transported flour from Lagos to Ekpoma, Edo State, before agreeing to convey the drugs for a fee of ₦1.7 million.
Further operations in Edo State led to the arrest of Shaibu Yusuf on the Auchi–Abuja Expressway with 66 bags of skunk weighing 792 kilogrammes, concealed in charcoal sacks.
In another raid, NDLEA operatives, supported by the Nigerian Army, destroyed a cannabis farm at Ebora Camp, Ilushi, in Esan South East Local Government Area, where 4,063 kilogrammes of skunk cultivated on 1.6 hectares of land were uprooted. An additional 328 kilogrammes of processed cannabis and seeds were recovered, while four suspects were arrested.
In Anambra State, officers intercepted a cement-laden truck at Upper Iweka, Onitsha, uncovering 345.2 kilogrammes of skunk concealed among cement bags. One suspect, Abum Okeke (42), was arrested.
Operations in Ondo State resulted in the arrest of two suspects in Akure North with 473 kilogrammes of skunk, while Kano State recorded the seizure of 12,500 ampoules of pentazocine injection from Abdullahi Usman. Another suspect, Musa Shuaibu, was arrested with 4,390 tramadol pills in Gaya.
In Lagos, NDLEA operatives arrested Oragwan Ekene at Alaba with 15.5 kilogrammes of skunk en route to Anambra State, while 3.5 kilogrammes of cannabis were recovered from the luggage of a traveller arriving from Cotonou, Benin Republic, at the Seme border.
Beyond enforcement, Babafemi said the agency sustained its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation campaigns across schools, religious institutions, workplaces and communities nationwide.
Commending the officers involved, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (Rtd), urged personnel to maintain a balanced approach combining drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction in tackling substance abuse and trafficking.
By Michael Olugbode, Abuja
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