22nd March, 2011
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) said on Monday that it had arrested two suspected drug traffickers at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, with 6.4kg of cocaine.
A statement by the agency’s spokesman, Mr. Mitchell Ofoyeju, said one of the suspects (name withheld) was arrested on Sunday on arrival from Brazil.
It said the other suspect was nabbed at the airport while attempting to receive the drug.
“The drug was concealed in the luggage of the suspected trafficker on an Emirate flight while his accomplice was at the airport to receive the drug.
“The drug was concealed inside female handbags in the luggage; the accomplice was caught in the process of smuggling out the drug out of the airport,†the statement said.
The NDLEA said the two suspects had made “useful statements†on the incident.
Commenting on the arrests, NDLEA’s Chairman, Alhaji Ahmadu Giade, said the arrests were made possible because his men were put on red alert for passengers on the Nigeria-Brazil route.
“This is a result of vigilance and meticulous search by the officers following a red alert placed on the route.
“We promise drug barons tough times in Nigeria,†the statement quoted him as saying.