By Kehinde Olayinka
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 48-year-old businessman, Nwankwo Onyebuchi, with 1.55kg of cocaine concealed inside the walls and railings of his luggage at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos.
The NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday.
According to Babafemi, Onyebuchi, who was into marble trading in Lagos, was arrested at the departure hall of Terminal II while attempting to board a Qatar Airways flight to New Delhi, India.
A search of his check-in luggage allegedly revealed 1.55kg of cocaine factory-fitted into the walls and railings of the bag.
The suspect reportedly confessed that he had sold his marble business and other assets to raise N23 million to purchase the consignment, which he hoped to sell in India for as much as N100 million.
“In a candid confession that lays bare the desperation that fuels the drug trade, Nwankwo said he had sold off his marble business and every asset he owned to raise the ₦23 million he paid for the consignment, with the expectation of selling it in India for as much as N100 million,” Babafemi said.
The agency said the suspect remained in custody and would be prosecuted.
In a separate operation, NDLEA operatives, acting on credible intelligence, raided a warehouse located within a residential compound on Hakeem Dosumu Street in the Ago Palace area of Okota, Lagos.
The operation, conducted between Friday, August 7, and Saturday, August 8, led to the recovery of 3,776 cartons containing 377,600 bottles of codeine-based syrup. The controlled substance was valued at more than N2.6 billion.
The agency also raided the residence of a suspected drug kingpin, 55-year-old Shoremi Kayode, on August 14 at Ogundare Street, Ipaja Estate, Lagos.
NDLEA operatives reportedly recovered 324kg of Colorado, a synthetic strain of cannabis, with an estimated street value of N972 million.
Two vehicles—a Mercedes-Benz and a Toyota Corolla—were also recovered from the suspect.
The NDLEA further reported drug arrests and seizures in Kwara, Oyo, Delta, Plateau, Kano and Edo states.
In Kwara State, operatives arrested Abubakar Adamu, 50, and Bilyaminu Nuhu, 30, on August 13 at the Kam Wire area of Ilorin. The suspects were allegedly found with 55.96kg of skunk concealed in a truck marked DKA 350 XL.
In Oyo State, two other suspects, Abdulfatai Oyelaran, 70, and Abdulrauf Ajadi, 50, were arrested on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway on August 12.
The agency said 52,000 ampoules of pentazocine injection and 6,000 ampoules of tramadol injection were recovered from their Toyota Sienna vehicle, marked FFA-115KA.
