Two Nigerian returnees from Brazil have excreted 1.425 kilograms of heroin while in the custody of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) after their arrest at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos.
The suspects, identified as Ofoma Sunday, 46, and Ukachukwu Frank Ikechukwu, were intercepted on separate Ethiopian Airlines flights from Brazil.
According to NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, Ofoma was arrested on September 16 during inward clearance at Terminal 2 of the Lagos airport. A body scan confirmed he had ingested illicit drugs. Under observation, he later excreted 111 wraps of heroin weighing 1.425kg in eight excretions. A follow-up operation at a hotel in Amuwo Odofin led to the arrest of Nweke Jude Chukwudi, 55, who was designated to retrieve the consignment.
Similarly, Ikechukwu was arrested on September 19 after arriving Lagos via Addis Ababa. He was confirmed to have inserted cocaine into his body. Under excretion watch, he expelled five big wraps of cocaine weighing 145 grams. He confessed to inserting nine wraps in Brazil but disposed of some during his transit in Ethiopia due to severe anal pain.
In another operation, NDLEA operatives arrested a businesswoman, Okolonkwo Ebere Theresa, on September 14 while attempting to board a Qatar Airways flight to Doha. She was caught concealing 1.40kg of methamphetamine in her butt pad underwear.
Also at the Lagos airport, 2.3kg of methamphetamine concealed in food items and destined for Hong Kong was intercepted on September 15, while 257 grams of cocaine hidden inside phone chargers heading to New Zealand was seized on September 18 at a courier firm.
The agency also made major seizures in other states. In Adamawa, a total of 233,800 tramadol pills were recovered in three operations, including 195,600 pills found in an abandoned vehicle in Mayo Belwa and 27,900 pills recovered from a suspect’s house in Jimeta. Another 10,300 pills were seized from a 22-year-old suspect at a checkpoint in Namtari.
In Zamfara, operatives intercepted 1,099.4kg of skunk being conveyed in a truck to Gummi Local Government Area, while in Yobe, two suspects were arrested with 14,000 capsules of tramadol. In Taraba, 25.5kg of skunk was seized from a suspect at Garba-Chede in Bali LGA.
In Edo State, NDLEA officers destroyed cannabis farms covering 4.5 hectares with an estimated yield of over 11,000kg, arresting three suspects at the site.
Meanwhile, the agency continued its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation programmes in schools, communities and worship centres across several states, including Sokoto, Katsina, Jigawa, Benue, and Kano.
NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended the operatives for the successful operations, describing the seizures as “a significant milestone in dismantling drug trafficking organisations targeting Nigerian youths.”
