The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested an Indian national and three Nigerians in connection with a N3.9 billion shipment of tramadol intercepted at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos.
The foreign suspect, identified as businessman Gupta Ravi Kumar, was taken into custody after officers traced the consignment to him. The Nigerian accomplices, Ogunlana Olanrewaju, Olushola Kayode, and Bakare Muheeb, were linked to the drugs, which were brought into the country from Delhi, India.
The agency reported that the consignment consisted of over 2.2 million tramadol pills packed in 114 cartons. The drugs, disguised as multivitamins, were imported on an Ethiopian Airlines flight that arrived on September 8. Operatives who had been monitoring the shipment arrested a clearing agent and two drivers as they attempted to move the consignment in trucks on September 11. Kumar was later arrested while trying to take delivery of the cartons.
Further arrests were made during operations across the country. At Lagos airport, a passenger bound for Doha was caught with nearly one kilogram of skunk hidden in crayfish, leading to the arrest of his partner at a nearby hotel. At Tincan Port, officers uncovered 161 parcels of Canadian Loud and hashish oil hidden inside a container of spare parts from Montreal. More arrests followed, including the seizure of 65kg of Loud from a vehicle intercepted on Third Mainland Bridge.
In courier firms across Lagos, NDLEA officers discovered methamphetamine hidden in a picture frame destined for Gabon and cannabis concealed in decoders headed for the UAE. A raid on a factory in Ikorodu exposed the mass production of “skuchies,” a drink made with cannabis and blackcurrant. Over 6,000 bottles of the product and more than four tonnes of cannabis were recovered, with the factory manager arrested.
Other operations across the country also led to seizures and arrests. In Abuja, a dispatch rider was apprehended with cocaine and cannabis. In Oyo State, three women were caught with 17kg of skunk. In Kano, 100,000 tramadol pills were seized from a suspect, while various drugs and chemicals were recovered from others. A couple in Anambra was arrested with methamphetamine, tramadol, and other narcotics. In Yobe, a suspect was caught with cannabis, while in Ogun State, three traffickers were stopped with nearly 400kg of skunk during a joint NDLEA-police operation.
In Edo State, operatives destroyed over 16 tonnes of cannabis found on a plantation covering more than six hectares of land, while additional quantities were recovered from other suspects.
The Chairman of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd.), praised the officers for the operations and urged them to remain vigilant in the ongoing fight against drug trafficking and abuse across Nigeria.