LAGOS (ChatnewsTV) — Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested an Ibadan-based businesswoman and an auto parts dealer over attempts to export consignments of opioids and cocaine to the United Kingdom and Congo Brazzaville, respectively.
Mrs. Adewunmi Adebola Dorcas, a businesswoman from Oyo State, and Arinze Ora, an auto parts dealer, were apprehended after NDLEA officers intercepted illicit drug shipments at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos.
On September 6, NDLEA officers at the airport’s export shed uncovered a cargo bound for the UK containing 924 bottles of codeine-based syrup weighing 135.7 kg and 5,250 tablets of rohypnol hidden in cartons of foodstuff. “The freight agent, Owojori Olanrewaju Sunday, who presented the cargo for export, was immediately arrested,” the agency said.
Further investigations led to the arrest of Adewunmi Akeem Temitope, who claimed that his mother, Mrs. Adewunmi, had sent the consignment from Ibadan to Lagos. “Mrs. Adewunmi was arrested the following day in Ibadan, where she runs a foodstuff and cargo export business,” NDLEA disclosed.
In his confession, Owojori revealed that he had been working for Mrs. Adewunmi to export drugs, stating that he was paid N2.4 million for the job and N2.1 million for a previous shipment.
In another incident on September 11, NDLEA operatives seized 300 grams of cocaine hidden in checkers powder custard containers that were being exported alongside auto parts to Congo Brazzaville. This led to the arrest of Arinze Ora, a Lagos-based auto parts dealer.
Meanwhile, the agency’s Special Operations Unit arrested two brothers, Ikechukwu and Ugochukwu Ikeabba, who allegedly sponsor drug traffickers to Vietnam. Their arrest followed the investigation of Ibeanusi Solomon Nosike, a businessman from Anambra State, who was arrested on August 8 after excreting 68 wraps of cocaine at Lagos airport.
Another Vietnam-bound suspect, Paul Okwuy Mbadugha, was arrested on August 12 at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja after ingesting 88 wraps of cocaine.
In Gombe State, three suspects were arrested on September 14 while attempting to transport 2.49 million pills of tramadol concealed in bags of salt. In separate operations across Kaduna, Ekiti, Bauchi, and Lagos, NDLEA officers seized over 104 kg of cannabis and 208,920 pills of tramadol and diazepam. A major operation at the Tincan Port in Lagos uncovered 350,000 bottles of codeine-based syrup smuggled from India.
NDLEA Chairman, Mohamed Buba Marwa, commended the officers for their dedication. “These operational successes are deeply appreciated, and I urge all personnel to continue intensifying efforts to reduce both drug supply and demand,” Marwa stated.
The agency’s War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) program continued with educational campaigns in schools, mosques, and workplaces across the country, including outreach efforts in Jigawa, Niger, Edo, and Oyo states.
