BY BRIGHT JACOB
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency have intercepted 22 blocks of heroin weighing 23.55kilograms concealed in packs of Nestle Cerelac baby food at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos.
Femi Babafemi, Director, Media & Advocacy at the NDLEA headquarters, Abuja, said in a statement on Sunday that the consignment with a street value of over N4.5billion came from Johannesburg, South Africa on board a South African Airways flight on Wednesday, June 29, as part of a consolidated cargo that arrived the SAHCO import shed of the Lagos airport.
He said after series of follow up operations that led to the arrest of two freight agents, the actual receiver of the drug consignment, Chike Okeke Eweni who distributes the substance for his South Africa based partner was arrested the following day, Thursday, June 30, at a logistics warehouse in Ajao Estate, Ikeja.
Babafemi said Chike who hails from Anaocha LGA, Anambra state claimed during preliminary interview that he’s also into fish farming.
Before the arrest of Chike, he explained NDLEA officers at the airport had on Monday, June 27, arrested a former driver with a public transport company, BRT, Muyiwa Babalola Bolujoko, for ingesting 90 pellets of cocaine.
He was arrested at the screening point before boarding a Qatar Airways flight enroute Doha to Sharjah, with his trip expected to terminate in Dubai, UAE.
The 39-year-old from Ijebu South LGA, Ogun State, was placed under excretion observation after a body scan result confirmed drug ingestion.
While in custody, the suspect excreted all the 90 pellets in four excretions.
He claimed he left his N60, 000 per month job as BRT driver in February and decided to work as drug courier to raise funds to buy a shuttle bus popularly called ‘Korope’ in Lagos to continue his transport business.
Operatives also on Thursday, June 30, intercepted an inbound consignment of khat leaves, which arrived at the NAHCO import shed of the Lagos airport on Royal Air Maroc flight from the Middle East.
A total of 71 cartons of dried khat leaves with a gross weight of 2,434.3 kg were discovered in the cargo.
In the same vein, anti-narcotic officers of the Agency also last Thursday seized 36 parcels of Colorado, a variant of cannabis with a total weight of 19.30kg which arrived at the NAHCO import shed from Los Angeles, US on a Delta Airlines flight.
After a series of follow up operations in which four persons were arrested, the actual owner of the drug consignment, Abibu Afis Sola was eventually nabbed on Friday, July 1, in Gbagada area of Lagos.
Meanwhile, in Rivers State, NDLEA operatives on Wednesday, June 29, arrested a 68-year-old woman, Mrs. Celina Ekeke at Obunku community, Oyigbo LGA with 231.2kg cannabis, while one Shedrack Eze, was arrested the following day Thursday, June 30 at Yankarfe, Zaria, Kaduna state with 250,000 tablets of Exol 5, weighing 75kg.
In Borno State, Usman Haruna, 27, was arrested at BCG checkpoint in Biu on Saturday, July 2, with 19.7kg cannabis.
