NDLEA Intercepts Hard Drugs Concealed In Food Items, Arrest Masterminds At MMIA, Abuja Hotels

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) agents stopped drug syndicates from exporting large quantities of cocaine, methamphetamine, and opioids to the UK, Italy, Turkey, and Qatar through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Ikeja, Lagos, and the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA) in Abuja. Through a series of intelligence-led operations, they retrieved the illegal drugs and apprehended the masterminds.

At the Lagos airport’s export shed, NDLEA officers intercepted 13 packages of cocaine weighing 4.40 kg that were headed to the United Kingdom via Frankfurt on a Lufthansa Airlines flight on November 5, 2024. On November 8, they tracked down and arrested Ekeocha Anayo Nelson, a businessman connected to the shipment.

In addition, on Friday, November 15, NDLEA officers from the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation, DOGI, along with their counterparts from the FCT Command of the Agency, raided a hotel room at the Federal Housing Authority estate, Lugbe, Abuja, and arrested two suspects, Omeh Uchenna Jude, 36, and Anene Valentine Chigozie, 34.

Two suspects, Omeh Uchenna Jude, 36, and Anene Valentine Chigozie, 34, were taken into custody by NDLEA officers from the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation, DOGI, and their counterparts from the Agency’s FCT Command during a raid on a hotel room at the Federal Housing Authority estate, Lugbe, Abuja, on Friday, November 15, in response to reliable intelligence. They were getting ready to travel to Qatar with the 1.8 kilogram of methamphetamine that was recovered from them.

The attempt to export 60 bottles of codeine, 180 rohypnol tablets, and 7,800 tramadol pills to Italy by another businessman, Adegbite Solomon (also known as Obama), was also stopped on Monday, November 11 at the Lagos airport’s departure hall when NDLEA agents arrested him after finding the opioids hidden in food and other items while he was trying to board an Ethiopian Airlines flight to Italy. He stated that before entering the logistics industry, he traveled to Europe across the Mediterranean Sea and made a livelihood as a street beggar.

After weeks of information and observation, members of an NDLEA Special Operations Unit apprehended another suspect, Akande Moruf Olasunkanmi, at his residence at 9 Durojaiye Street, Lawanson area of Surulere, Lagos, with 1.8 kg of methamphetamine.

A Gentle Reminder: Every obstacle is a stepping stone, every morning; a chance to go again, and those little steps take you closer to your dream.

Nnamdi Okoli