The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has found shipments of Cannabis Indica, often known as Colorado, that were concealed in vehicles imported from Montreal, Canada, at the Tincan seaport in Apapa and the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), both in Ikeja, Lagos.
This was said in a statement given by Femi Babafemi, Director of Media and Advocacy, NDLEA, on Sunday, December 25, in Abuja.
The drugs were shipped in from South Africa in packs of cannabis juice, according to Mr. Babafemi, and were meant for distribution before the Christmas holiday.
According to him, 185 packets of Cannabis indica totaling 61.3kg were also recovered at the Tincan seaport in Lagos during a combined container assessment.
Additionally, he stated that the container with the shipping label MSCU5206726 from Montreal, Canada, was declared to contain three units of used cars.
“But upon a 100% examination, it was found to contain two vehicles; a 2009 Toyota Corolla car and a 2009 Ford Econoline bus as well as used car engines, bicycles, shoes and other items including the drugs,” the statement said.
“Two dock workers: Abdulquadri Abdulazeez and Ogbuji Kenneth, are already in NDLEA custody in connection with the seizure following their initial arrest by the Port Security and the Police.”
On December 21, smuggled bottles of cannabis juice with a gross weight of 16.50kg were discovered, according to Mr. Babafemi, during the search of consolidated cargo from South Africa.
He claimed that this occurred at the Lagos airport’s import shed, operated by Skyway Aviation Handling Company Plc (SAHCO).
“Investigations by anti-narcotics officers subsequently led to the arrest of four freight agents: Soremekun Olalekan Wasiu; Olufisayo Dayo; Moruf Olusegun Bashir and Imole Moses Ajayi.
“The suspects’ statements eventually led to the arrest of the consignee, a wine shop business owner, Emebede Chuka, the following day, Dec. 22.”
Additionally, an attempt to export large amounts of MDMA, often known as ecstasy and cannabis, to Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), was thwarted.
He claimed that this was accomplished through the Nigerian Aviation Handling Company Plc (NAHCO), export shed on December 23, and vulcanizer Iyanda Ogunleye Yaya, who was assigned the mission for a cost of N4,000, has been detained.
According to the NDLEA spokesperson, two suspects carrying 161 blocks of marijuana were apprehended along the Zaria-Kano route in Kwanar Dangora, Kano State: Nura Zakariya’u and Alkasim Abubakar.
The narcotics, according to Mr. Babafemi, weighed 152 kg and included varying amounts of codeine- and exol-based syrup.
He claimed that Amaechi Johnson, a suspect, was found in Imo State while en route to Onitsha, Anambra State, with a total of 100,000 tramadol pills.
“Similarly, a total of 708 kg of cannabis were recovered by operatives from a bus at Ehinogbe, Owo area of Ondo state on Dec. 20,” he said.
