The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has carried out a series of high-profile arrests nationwide, including a 72-year-old grandmother, suspected drug traffickers at major airports, and a cross-border smuggler, as part of its intensified crackdown on drug-related offense.
In a statement issued on Sunday in Abuja, NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Mr. Femi Babafemi, disclosed that 72-year-old Mrs. Christy Ejaro was arrested on June 25 in the Niger CAT area of Warri, Delta State.She was reportedly caught with several sachets of skunk—a highly potent strain of cannabis—already packaged in retail quantities for distribution.
Meanwhile, NDLEA operatives at Akanu Ibiam International Airport in Enugu carried out two significant seizures on Friday involving suspected international drug traffickers.
One of the suspects, 38-year-old Chibuzor Emmanuel—a bar attendant based in Maputo, Mozambique—was intercepted with 17 cardboard-sized parcels of methamphetamine weighing 17.5 kilograms, along with three parcels of cocaine weighing 3.05 kilograms.The illicit substances were concealed within bedsheets in his luggage. Emmanuel had arrived from Johannesburg, South Africa, via Addis Ababa on an Ethiopian Airlines flight.
Another passenger on the same flight, 54-year-old Azu Kpodar, a toy vendor based in São Paulo, Brazil, was also arrested. During a search of his luggage, operatives discovered a plastic container labeled as liquid soap, which upon forensic analysis tested positive for cocaine. The liquid cocaine weighed 1.25 kilograms. Kpodar claimed he had purchased the item while shopping for his upcoming wedding in Nigeria.
In a separate operation conducted on June 24 at the Seme border in Badagry, Lagos State, NDLEA operatives apprehended a 26-year-old Beninese national, Vode Jean-Luck. He was caught attempting to smuggle 69 wraps of skunk, with a total weight of 29.5 kilograms, from the Benin Republic.
Also in Kwara State, NDLEA operatives raided the hideout of a notorious drug dealer, Bolanle Oladele (popularly known as Iya Nafi), in Omu-Aran, Irepodun Local Government Area, on June 25. Various quantities of skunk, tramadol, and flunitrazepam were recovered during the operation.
Commending the efforts of the operatives, NDLEA Chairman, retired Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa, praised officers in Delta, Kwara, and Seme Commands for their successful raids and seizures. He also lauded all NDLEA formations nationwide for maintaining a strong approach to both drug supply and demand.
