BY MOYINOLUWA BAMIDELE-LUCAS
A Ghanaian and two Nigerians have been arrested by officials of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja and Akanu Ibiam international Airport, Enugu respectively for trafficking a total of 9.953kilograms of Cocaine and Methamphetamine.
One of the suspects, Uzoh Ndubuisi Johnson, was arrested on December 8, 2021 at about 5.30pm during an inward screening of Ethiopian Airlines passengers at the Arrival Hall of the airport. Uzoh who arrived from Brazil via Addis Ababa, Ethiopia was controlled and arrested with clothes impregnated with cocaine, which has a gross weight of 6.7 kilograms.
NDLEA’s spokesman, Femi Babafemi, said in a statement on Sunday, that while being interviewed by narcotic officers, Uzoh said he was given the consignment by his enabler based in Brazil for which he would be paid N3 million upon successful delivery to someone in Nigeria.
In the same vein, another trafficker, 53-year-old Udeh Charley was arrested at the Enugu airport for ingesting 72 wraps of Cocaine weighing 1.253kilograms.
Babafemi also said he was arrested on December 3, 2021 during outward screening of Ethiopian Airlines passengers going to Rome, Italy via Addis Ababa.
In custody, he claimed he would have been paid 4000 Euros on successful delivery of the drugs in Italy where he has been living for over 20 years.
He attributed his decision to engage in the ignominious trade to the downward turn of his business as a result of COVID-19 pandemic.
In a related development, another trafficker, 25-year-old John Kadja, whose father is from Kumasi, Ashanti region of Ghana and mother from Nsukka, Enugu State, was arrested on December 3, with 2 kilograms of Methamphetamine during an outward clearance of Qatar Airways from Abuja to Doha at the departure screening area of Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.
A search of his bag showed that the drug was concealed in a false bottom of his checked in luggage. He said he was travelling to Doha to work as a labourer.
In Ondo State, 43-year-old Onuoha Friday was arrested on December 10 along Lagos-Benin expressway with one million capsules of Tramadol while in two major arrests in Anambra State, a total of 238.973kilograms of assorted illicit drugs were recovered.
Also on December 3, NDLEA operatives intercepted a truck at the Onitsha head bridge heading to Delta State.
Upon search, various quantities of Codeine, Tramadol, Diazepam, and Rohypnol were recovered from the vehicle and its driver, Obinna Obinwa, arrested.
Similarly, on December 8, the Agency’s patrol team on Onitsha head bridge intercepted another truck going to Delta with different quantities of assorted illicit drugs while the driver, Lucky James, was also arrested.
In Delta, raids and follow up operations carried out in parts of the state on December 10 led to the arrest of a 17-year-old Abdulkarim Shiabu and 23-year-old Lawal Saidu, both from Niger Republic and four others with different quantities of Cocaine, Heroin, Methamphetamine, Tramadol and Cannabis.
Others arrested included Precious Oghenegwoke; Loveth Omukoro; Uche Godwin and Uti Harrison.
In Kogi, Adam Salaudeen was arrested at Ogori Magongo area of the state with 214.7kg of Cannabis sativa.
