Drug trafficking: Despite clampdown, the illicit estate blossoms
In its lastest update report on seizure of hard drugs and arrest of traffickers, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) disclosed that it intercepted fresh consignments of cocaine and heroin weighing 16.85 kilograms worth more than N4.9 billion in street value. In a statement issued on Sunday (November 14) by its Director on Media and Advocacy, Mr Femi Babafemi, the NDLEA revealed that its operatives intercepted the consignments at the Apapa Seaport and at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos. According to the statement, four persons were being investigated for the 13.65kg cocaine seized on board a ship, MV Karteria that came into the Apapa Port from Santos, Brazil, on Sunday, November 7. This was barely three weeks after 32.9kg of cocaine was intercepted at the port on another vessel, MV Chayanee Naree, also from Santos, Brazil. The anti-drug trafficking Agency said in a well-coordinated follow-up operations, five persons have been arrested in different parts of Lagos and Delta in connection with the shipment.
The statement had read: “A consignment of 3.2kg heroin was found on a passenger, Christian Osondu at the E-Arrival Hall of the (MMIA) on Friday, November 5, during the inward clearance of Air Peace flight from South Africa. A swift follow-up operation on the same day led to the arrest of one Ude Onyeka at Mafoluku area of Oshodi in Lagos. Onyeka confessed that his elder brother, Ikenna Ude, who is based in South Africa, had instructed him to collect the bag containing the drug. He confessed also that he was to hand over to another person who was supposed to come from Delta. A second follow-up operation led to the arrest of Innocent Abanjo who came to Lagos from Delta to pick the bag around “Cele” Bus Stop, Okota, on Saturday, November 6. Abanjo also confessed that he was contracted by one Oseki Chinedu, who is based in South Africa to travel to Lagos to collect the bag and to take it to Agbor junction in Delta. The third follow-up operation led to the arrest of Ihator Isioma at Agbor Junction on Sunday, November 7.
“In another development, NDLEA operatives arrested one Emeka Obeluo on Saturday, November 13 with 600 grams of heroin in Bayelsa. The suspect, a motor spare parts dealer hails from Anambra West Local Government Area but based in Douala. Obeluo arrived in Yenagoa by sea to waybill the substance to an undisclosed address in Lagos. Four suspects were arrested and different quantities of cocaine, Indian hemp, tramadol and Methamphetamine seized from them during weekend raids in parts of Rivers. Those arrested are Elizabeth Iniama, Sir King Emmanuel, Godgift King and Amadi Bright.
“18.51kg of illicit drugs were recovered on Saturday, November 13 when operatives raided Bayan Gari and Sir Ahmadu Bello Way in Bauchi. Two suspects, Gabriel Iwagbunan and Ms Cecilia Ezena were arrested during the raid. A 23-year-old Hadiza Ibrahim was also arrested on Friday, November 12 on the Okene-Lokoja Highway with 54kg of Indian hemp, while one Sunday Nnam a.k.a Idowu was nabbed same day in Emene area of Enugu with 45kg also of Indian hemp. In Gombe, one Umar Muhammad was arrested with 25,700 capsules of Tramadol weighing 15.1kg in Tudun Hatsi area of the state capital. Following credible intelligence, two suspects, David Oduku, and Ifeanyi Raphael, were intercepted on Ore-Shagamu Expressway with 364.98kg of Indian hemp being conveyed in a blue Toyota bus. The two suspects Buhari Jamiu and Ajibola Jimoh were also arrested on Sunday, Nov. 14 with 189kg of Indian hemp at Olorunlagba, Bode Saadu area near Ilorin.”
The accounts of the profile of seizures by the NDLEA recently reveal nothing but the reflection of a broadened estate of the sharp practice. Despite clampdown by operatives of the Agency, weekly updates have been revealing seizures running into billions. On the 24th October, operation report of the NDLEA for the preceding week had revealed the Agency intercepted no less than 2,060 kilograms of assorted drugs including heroin, methamphetamine, cannabis, tramadol and rohypnol in various operations at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, MMIA, Lagos as well as Ondo, Edo, Kano, Kaduna, Plateau and some courier companies. Two consignments of heroin weighing 4. 40kg and 550grams were intercepted on October 6 and 15 respectively at the cargo shed of the MMIA, Ikeja.
In a statement on Sunday, 17th October, the NDLEA had disclosed that in the preceding week it intercepted various drugs with cumulative weight of over 153, 256.876 kilograms. The Agency had also disclosed that it arrested no less than 663 suspects in various States within the same period. It was disclosed that among the 663 suspects arrested were a youth corps member, a police officer and a soldier suspected, all suspected to be fake. The statement revealed the NDLEA operatives had raided notorious drug joints in Lagos, Abuja, Benue and other parts of the Country as of the time in question. The statement had revealed while a suspected fake Assistant Superintendent of Police Joshua Yusuf, who claimed to be serving in Kano, was arrested along Gwagwalada expressway conveying 45.5kg of Cannabis, a suspected fake soldier, Abel John, was arrested along Apir-Makurdi-Aliade road, with 3.5kg of cannabis on Wednesday, Oct. 13; just as in Benue State, a youth corps member, Paul Ndubuisi, was arrested among others with different quantities of drugs.
Sunday 12th September, the Agency had disclosed that in the preceding week it intercepted and seized over 24,311kg of heroin, codeine as well as Arizona and Colorado variants of cannabis in recent drug busts at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Ikeja and the Tincan seaport, Apapa, Lagos. That came barely a week after the Agency intercepted N6billion worth of Amphetamine, popularly known as jihadists drug, at the Apapa port in Lagos. It would be recalled that early September, the NDLEA had disclosed that it had seized illicit 2,776,000kg of drugs worth over N100 billion between January and August 2021 and arrested 8,634 suspected drug traffickers including 6,461 males and 547 females, during the period. The Agency had further disclosed that it also destroyed 1,202 hectares of cannabis farms in various States across the Country, while It disclosed that more than 10 million Nigerians abused drugs in the period under review. According to the Agency, as at September 06, it had secured 1,630 convictions, 3,232 cases in court and over 4,269 drug users counselled and rehabilitated between January and August.
The prevailing situation now calls for nothing but a systemic approach that incorporates interconnected frameworks of formidable broad architecture of responses that would address the metabiotic factors informing the expansion of the networks of the sharp practice. This should incorporate deterrent parameters, as well as, psychological approaches appealing to the sense of raising configurations of reactions towards making the practice and its venture uninteresting and unattractive to Nigerians.
