7th August, 2022
A suspected trans-border drug dealer, Pastor Anietie Okon Effiong has been arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, with three drums of crystal methamphetamine, locally called Mkpuru Mmiri.
A statement issued by NDLEA’s spokesman, Femi Babafemi on Sunday said the drugs were believed to have been imported from India.
According to him, the consignment weighing 90 kilogrammes and loaded into a commercial bus with registration number RSH 691XC at Ojuelegba in Lagos was intercepted during a stop and search operation along Umuahia – Ikot Ekpene highway on Saturday 6th August, 2022.
“The dangerous drug packed 30kg in each drum was meant for Pastor Anietie Okon Effiong, who was arrested in a follow up operation at Oron beach in Oron. The recovered Meth drums were meant for onward delivery to the Republic of Cameroon,” he said.
Babafemi said the arrest comes on the heels of four seizures of the same illicit substance weighing 4.074kg going to Australia, Indonesia and Philippines with a 3kg cannabis sativa heading to Dubai, United Arab Emirates at some courier companies in Lagos.
He added that the consignments were concealed in body cream, hot burner iron and beads.
The NDLEA’s spokesman also disclosed that in Kaduna, four suspects: Sulaiman Rabi’u; Sanusi Sha’aibu; Ma’aruf Habibu and Christian Nnachor, were arrested in Zaria, Tafa and Romi Kaduna with 106, 770 tablets of Tramadol 225mg, Diazepam, Exol-5 and 100 bottles of codeine cough syrup.
“In Enugu, 143.5kg cannabis sativa was recovered from locked up stores in new market area of the state capital on Saturday 6th Aug, while in Delta, a suspect, Ike Okparachi, 42, was arrested at Abraka Junction, Asaba with 10,550 tablets of Tramadol 225mg; Swinol; Rohypnol; and 3,105 bottles of codeine syrup as well as 69grams of Molly,” he said.