The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Tincan seaport in Lagos has intercepted a multi-billion-naira worth of shipments of methamphetamine and loud meant for distribution during the Christmas and New Year festive season.
The strong synthetic strain of cannabis concealed in automobile spare parts imported from Canada, a statement by the Director, Media and Advocacy of the NDLEA, Mr. Femi Babafemi on Sunday said, was intercepted after months of intelligence-driven tracking of the cargoes across three continents.
For the first time in the history of NDLEA’s anti-narcotic operations, two consignments of methamphetamine weighing 83.301 kilograms were on 12th and 13th December 2024, recovered from separate containers bearing vehicles and spare parts coming from Canada and heading to warehouses in the Ladipo automobile parts market in Mushin area of Lagos State.
While one of the containers going to Ladipo market through the Sifax bonded terminal was examined on 12th December, the statement said, not less than 5.001kg methamphetamine hidden in a bag wrapped in bed sheet that came in a Toyota Camry car, was recovered, even as a businessman, Isaac Onwumere linked with the consignment was promptly arrested.
The other container bearing automobile spare parts checked on 13th December was found to contain 1, 735 parcels of loud packed in 44 jumbo bags with a total weight of 867.5kg and six plastic coolers containing 87 packs of methamphetamine weighing 78.3kg.
Babafemi said, at least, two businessmen: Nwanolue Emeka and Friday Ogbe have been arrested in connection with the seizure. The two meth consignments have a combined weight of 83.301kg worth 124,951,000.00 while the 867.5kg loud is worth N2,168,750,000.00 in street value.
The statement said, the seizures were made during a joint examination of the shipments with Customs and other port stakeholders, following months of intelligence processing and tracking of the consignments from their ports of loading in Canada to the landing port in Lagos by combined Special Operations Units in NDLEA and the Tincan Port Strategic Command of the Agency.
The first container with 5.001kg meth came under the radar of NDLEA’s intelligence network on 4th October 2024 when the preparation for the shipment began in Toronto, Canada, monitored through 8th October when the shipment was received at the rail ramp, loaded on the rail and departed to Montreal, Canada where it arrived and was unloaded the following day 9th October.
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The consignment was further monitored till it was loaded on a vessel on 19th October through when the vessel arrived and discharged at Antwerp in Belgium on 30th October after which the consignment was trans-shipped and loaded on 14th November before arriving Lagos port on 1st December and released to a bonded terminal two days after.
The second shipment containing 867.5kg Loud and 78.3kg methamphetamine followed the same route. It came under NDLEA’s intelligence tracking on 8th October 2024 when the consignments were delivered to the shipper in Toronto, Canada, loaded on the rail on 14th October and arrived Montreal the following day, 15th, after which they were loaded on a vessel to Europe on 20th October.
After arrival and trans-shipment at Antwerp in Belgium on 6th and 17th November respectively, the consignments were tracked till they arrived and discharged from the vessel at Lagos port on 6th December before being moved to the terminal on 10th December.
At the Port Harcourt Port Complex, Onne, Rivers state, no fewer than 636,600 bottles of codeine-based syrup worth N4,456,200,000.00 in street value were intercepted in shipments from India on 9th, Wednesday 11th and 13th December 2024.
The seizures were made during joint examination of four containers by NDLEA officers, men of Customs and other security agencies at the port following processed credible intelligence on the shipments.
With the same vigour, the NDLEA spokesman said, Commands and formations of the Agency across the country continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitization activities to schools, worship centres, work places and communities among others in the past week.
While commending the officers and men of the Special Operations Units, Tincan, and Onne Commands of the Agency for the arrests and seizures, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig-Gen. Mohamed Marwa (Rtd) stated that the operational successes should show the drug barons and cartels that the Agency has the capacity and intelligence network to track their movements and their consignments even before getting to Nigeria.
He said drug barons and cartel will continue to lose heavily if they fail to back down on the criminal trade.
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