A convicted cocaine trafficker who disguised himself as a herbal tea trader has been caught by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), which also recovered a 20,000-litre fuel tanker with a hidden compartment holding 2,145kg of cannabis. Tea
The operations were undertaken throughout nine states and huge consignments of tramadol, methamphetamine, cannabis and other psychotropic substances have also been seized, the agency said in a statement yesterday.
The suspect, Dunu Bethel Ebubechukwu, 34, was apprehended in a sting operation at the Article Market adjacent the Trade Fair Market, Ojo, Lagos on Friday, September 4.
The arrest followed the July 31 discovery of 1.2kg of cocaine concealed in phone chargers and bound for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, at a courier firm in Lagos.
The NDLEA said its Directorate of Operations and General Investigation (DOGI) later located the accused mastermind through intelligence-led operations.
Ebubechukwu confessed to masterminding some illegal drug shipments and ditched his telephone SIM card after he heard that the last batch had been captured, the agency said. Tea
The NDLEA said he was originally detained at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, in 2011 for reportedly swallowing 900g of cocaine and 130g of heroin while attempting to go to Austria.
He was prosecuted, convicted and sentenced to five years in prison before he later changed his identity from Dunu Chukwuyenre Enoch to Dunu Bethel Ebubechukwu, the agency claimed.
He recovered from his apartment in Ejigbo, Lagos, phone chargers similar to those allegedly used to conceal the intercepted cocaine. They had stripped off the inner parts for narcotics.
Some of the 966,200 tablets of Tramadol 225mg worth over N1.1 billion, confiscated by operatives of the NDLEA at the Lagos airport, stashed within cheap trousers in a 21-carton cargo from Pakistan. Tea
They also found 57.8kg of Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis worth over N173 million, concealed in cartons of disposable hand gloves, in a consignment from Singapore.
NDLEA officers in Ondo State intercepted a 20,000-litre petrol tanker registered MKA 960 XC on Friday along the Akoko-Lokoja motorway after the driver allegedly refused to stop.
The driver left the vehicle at the church premises in Ugbe Akoko and escaped into the forest.
The ship was searched and a hidden compartment was found holding 165 bags of cannabis weighing 2,145kg. The truck also contained what was described as genuine fuel bound for Jos in Plateau State.
The agency intercepted 598.08kg containing 890 packs of cannabis-infused cookies and gummies in a 40-foot container on Wednesday at the Tin Can Port in Lagos. Tea bags
The cargo was allegedly connected to three suspects – Yashim Dauji, Larry Ifeanyi and Joseph Moji, who were arrested approximately a month ago after the seizure of 842.54kg of cannabis-infused cookies.
NDLEA operatives in Adamawa State have intercepted 864,000 opioid pills, mostly tramadol, in a house linked to a fleeing suspect, Patrick KC Frank.
Frank allegedly crashed his Honda Civic into an NDLEA enforcement vehicle before escaping, the agency stated.
In Michika, 35-year-old Calistus Ebubechukwu, a key methamphetamine dealer from Lagos to the Mubi and Michika axis, was caught with 2kg of methamphetamine, the agency said.
Another suspect, Attahiru Hussaini, was arrested at Namtari checkpoint in Mubi with tramadol and other narcotics stashed in a soap-laden Ford Galaxy bus with the mark JJM-953XD on August 31.
NDLEA officers seized 2,386.9kg of cannabis, 350g of cocaine, over 100kg of varied grades of tramadol, 9.7 litres of codeine syrup and 4kg of Rohypnol at Gbaji, Lagos.
Two suspects, Damilare Francis and Emeh Emmanuel, were also caught with 720kg of cannabis at Agbara. Do Background Checks
In Kogi State, 35-year-old Saidu Mustapha, 29-year-old Zaharadeen Salisu and 25-year-old AbdulSalam Abdullahi were detained with 636kg of cannabis allegedly buried in chicken dung on a bus heading from Owo, Ondo State, to Jos, Plateau State.
In Taraba State, 58-year-old Kelechi Unachukwu was detained on Zaki-Biam Road, Wukari Local Government Area, with more than 109kg of tramadol, diazepam, pentazocine, phenobarbital, Exol-5, nitrazepam, bromazepam and pregabalin.
It was learnt that the narcotics were concealed in his Toyota Corolla with registration number, KUJ-333BT, during transit from Onitsha, Anambra State to Yola, Adamawa State.
Operatives seized a truck filled with bags of cement on the Zaria-Kano motorway in Kaduna State and recovered 1,179kg of skunk.
In a related operation, 322.5kg of cannabis was recovered at Deba town, Gombe State on September 1, while 25-year-old Hamza Dahiru was apprehended in Bauchi State. Tea.
Operatives of the NDLEA have detained two suspects, Chuks Alex, 50 and Asafa Adekunle, 35 in Ekiti State following the discovery and destruction of a four-hectare cannabis farm in the Efon-Alaaye forest.
The operation also resulted in the recovery of 117kg of harvested skunk.
The defendant, Obinna David, 20, was apprehended at Ugbema Junction on Saturday with 40,590 capsules of tramadol in Enugu State
Meanwhile, the agency said its commands and formations continued to sensitise the people on War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) operations in schools, religious centers, workplaces and communities around the country.
The activities were enlightenment lectures for nursing mothers and nurses at Ibereko Primary Health Center, Abeokuta North, Ogun State; youths of Umouji/Okwo community in Olokoro, Umuahia South Local Government Area, Abia State; and staff and concessionaires at the Saipem-Daewoo NLNG terminal in Bonny, Rivers State. Tea (2)
The Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, NDLEA, Brig.-Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), complimented the officers involved in the operations, charging them to preserve the agency’s intelligence-led approach to drug control.
Traffickers who would seek to escape law enforcement by taking on new identities or working under legitimate business fronts would continue to be tracked down, said Marwa.
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