Alfred Lahiri and Kamsi Anayo
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, at the weekend, said its operatives at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja arrested two businessmen with consignments of cocaine and heroin to Hong Kong and France.
The agency said that the drug dealers concealed the illicit drugs in their stomachs.
The agency also said the operatives equally intercepted a hotel attendant with 29kgs of illicit drugs to Oman, an lat the Lagos airport.
The agency also said it seized over six tons of skunk in Ondo, Oyo, Lagos, Edo, Gombe states, respectfully.
The Director, Media and Advocacy, NDLEA Headquarters, Abuja, Femi Babafemi, said in a statement on Sunday that a 38-year-old mab, ThankGod Chimamkpa Emenike, was arrested at the boarding gate of the Abuja airport on Friday during the outward clearance of passengers on Air France flight 818 to Paris.
Babafemi added that another passenger, a 41-year-old Agbo Chidike Prince, was taken into NDLEA custody on Saturday 21st October while attempting to board an Ethiopian Airlines flight ET 950 to Hong Kong via Addis Ababa.
According to Babafemi, the suspects were both arrested and detained after their body scan revealed they ingested illicit drugs.
He stated that after days in custody, Emenike excreted 72 wraps of heroin weighing 1.171 kilograms, while Chidike discharged 49 pellets of cocaine with a total weight of 998.53grams.
“In his statement, Chidike claimed he is a businessman dealing in spare parts at the Alaba International market in Ojo area of Lagos. He added that he was to be paid N3.5million which he intended to use to import goods from Hong Kong.
“In the same vein, NDLEA operatives at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, MMIA, Ikeja Lagos on Wednesday 25th October intercepted a Qatar Airways flight passenger going to Oman, Agbo Celestine Tochukwu with a consignment of 58 parcels of skunk weighing 29.10kgs while undergoing processes to board his flight at the terminal 11 of the airport.
“Tochukwu in his statement, also claimed he relocated to Oman on 6th May and has been working as hotel attendant in Oman before venturing into drug trafficking.” Babafemi said.
He explained that a total of 2,197 kilograms of skunk were recovered in four interdiction operations in parts of Ondo state within four days. While 1,165.5kgs were seized in Uso, Owo LGA on Wednesday 25th October, a consignment of 691kgs were recovered from Ukugu forest in Ipele the previous day, Tuesday 24th October.
Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd), urged the operatives and their compatriots across all formations of the Agency to maintain the offensive action and strive to surpass previous records while maintaining a balance with their drug demand reduction efforts.
He commended the officers and men of the NAIA, MMIA, Ondo, Oyo, Lagos, Edo and Gombe Commands for the arrests and seizures of the past weeks.
