The National Drug Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in three major busts of drug cartels operating in Amuwo Odofin, Idumota and SAHCO shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos, recovered no less than 14, 481, 519 pills of Tramadol and bottles of codeine syrup.
The street value of the banned substances from the three intelligence-led operations has been estimated to be worth over N13, 000,000,000.
The anti-narcotic agency’s director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, stated this in a statement, Sunday.
Babafemi said the operations began with the raid of House 8/10 Hon. Wahuha Avenue, Divine Estate, Ago palace area of Amuwo Odofin Sunday, October 29, where 490,000 pills of tramadol and 81,519 bottles of codeine syrup measuring 4, 510, 000mls were recovered.
In a similar operation Tuesday 31st October, NDLEA operatives swooped on a secret warehouse operated by a billionaire Idumota trader, Nwaoha Anayo, located at Onitire, Aguda area of Surulere where 12, 700, 000 pills of tramadol were recovered.
In the same vein, at least six members of a syndicate using their official cover to facilitate the smuggling of illicit drugs through the Skyway Aviation Handling Company (SAHCO) warehouse at the Lagos airport into the country have been arrested and 1, 210, 000 pills of tramadol seized from them in a painstaking operation that lasted for weeks.
The six suspects already in NDLEA custody include: Oladele Sanya-Olu; Lawal Itunu Temitope; Sanamo Alla Daniel; Udeh Felix Monday; Musa Mutalib and Unege Evans Icibor, while three other suspects: Sarki Mubarak Salami; Abdullahi Aliyu (aka Aboki); and Monday Anwal, are now on the run and wanted by NDLEA.
At the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA), Abuja, NDLEA operatives on Sunday 29th October intercepted yet another businessman, 50-year-old Nwokolo Ifeanyi Anthony during the outward clearance of Air France flight AF 878 to Amsterdam, Netherlands via Paris, France at the boarding gate and was body scanned.