NDLEA uncovers 6.1kg Cocaine hidden in towels, shirts from Brazil

By Kazeem Ugbodaga

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intercepted a Brazil-based Nigerian businessman who allegedly attempted to smuggle 6.10 kilograms of liquid cocaine concealed in shirts and towels into the country, as the agency intensified its crackdown on drug trafficking networks nationwide.

NDLEA spokesman, Femi Babafemi, disclosed on Sunday in a statement that the suspect, 41-year-old Abugu Oliver Ikechukwu, was arrested at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos, upon his arrival from Sao Paulo, Brazil, via Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

According to Babafemi, a thorough search of the suspect’s luggage uncovered 14 shirts and towels impregnated with liquid cocaine, which had been dried and carefully ironed to evade detection by security operatives.

“Abugu was arrested upon arrival from Brazil on an Ethiopian Airlines flight. A detailed search of his luggage revealed 14 towels and shirts soaked in liquid cocaine, dried and neatly ironed,” Babafemi said.

During interrogation, the suspect reportedly told investigators that he had lived in Brazil for more than 14 years, where he operates an African restaurant. He claimed he travelled to Nigeria to visit his wife and purchase food items for his business.

Babafemi also disclosed that NDLEA operatives arrested two persons living with disabilities in separate anti-narcotics operations in Abia and Rivers states.

He said a 60-year-old woman, Chidimma Sunday, was apprehended with 1.8 kilograms of skunk in Umuna Autonomous Community, Isiala Ngwa North Local Government Area of Abia State after being intercepted by a local vigilante group and handed over to NDLEA.

In Rivers State, a 28-year-old suspect, Abubakar Usman, was arrested during a raid in Rumuokoro, Port Harcourt, with various illicit substances, including skunk, methamphetamine, tramadol, swinol and diazepam.

The agency’s operations extended to several other states, leading to major drug seizures and arrests.

In Delta State, operatives arrested 36-year-old Onya Jude with five gas cylinders used to conceal 2.8 kilograms of Loud, a potent strain of cannabis, at Ogwashi-Uku in Aniocha South Local Government Area.

Two suspected drug traffickers, Jamilu Idris, popularly known as Jama, and Aminu Abdullahi, alias Momo, were also arrested in Gombe State with 2.738 kilograms of skunk.

Babafemi further revealed that a female suspect, Ngozi Gaius, was arrested along the Zaria-Kano Road with 6,000 pills of Tramadol 225mg, while operatives in Kwara State intercepted 304 kilograms of skunk concealed in 600 compressed blocks inside a Toyota Jeep.

In one of the largest seizures recorded during the week, NDLEA operatives raided the warehouse of a suspected drug dealer, Ali Adamu, in Bali Local Government Area of Taraba State, recovering 1,121.5 kilograms of cannabis sativa packed in 63 jumbo bags.

Similarly, operatives on patrol along the Gwagwalada Expressway in the Federal Capital Territory arrested Emmanuel Nnadi and recovered over 30,000 tramadol pills, pregabalin capsules, molly tablets and hundreds of bottles of codeine-based syrup.

Babafemi added that a massive consignment of Ghana Loud weighing 1,102 kilograms was also recovered around Alaba International Market in the Ojo area of Lagos State.

Beyond enforcement operations, the NDLEA said its commands across the country continued to intensify the War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) campaign through sensitisation programmes in schools, communities, workplaces and traditional institutions.

Meanwhile, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Mohamed Buba Marwa, commended officers involved in the arrests and seizures across the affected commands.

According to Babafemi, Marwa praised the personnel for sustaining a balance between drug supply reduction efforts and public enlightenment campaigns, urging them to remain committed to surpassing previous operational achievements in the fight against illicit drugs.