Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a 48-year-old Paris-bound businessman, Emmanuel Okechuku Orjinze, for ingesting 111 wraps of cocaine, which he excreted after days of observation in the agency’s custody.
Okechukwu, who also claims he is a professional footballer in Europe, was arrested on Tuesday, May 21, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA), Abuja, during the outward clearance of Airfrance flight AF 878 from Abuja to Paris and France.
After a body scan confirmed he ingested illicit drugs, he was taken into custody where he excreted 111 pellets of cocaine weighing 1.603kg over a period of three days.
According to the agency’s spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, the suspect claimed he does business in the maritime sector while still scouting for any European football club to engage him.
In the same vein, NDLEA officers operating at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos dismantled another drug trafficking syndicate.
This followed the arrest of four members of the network and the seizure of 8kg of methamphetamine and 7.60kg of Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis imported from South Africa.
The lid was blown off the syndicate when an official within the airport system was intercepted with a backpack and a bag at the departure hall of Terminal 1 on Tuesday, May 21, 2024. A search of the bags led to the discovery of the illicit substances.
A swift follow-up operation at the Ajao Estate area of Lagos led to the arrest of two other members of the syndicate: Chris Nwadozie and Chinedu Nwaosu. Further investigation led to the arrest of another member working within the airport system on Saturday, May 25.
In a related development, NDLEA operatives at the NAHCO export shed of the Lagos airport arrested a freight agent, Sonubi Mariam Abiodun on Wednesday, May 22. She had attempted to cargo eight parcels of cocaine weighing 2kg. They were concealed in three out of six paint buckets containing shea butter packaged for export to the United Kingdom.
another part of Lagos, precisely at Igbo Elerin in Ojo Local Council, NDLEA officers on Tuesday, May 21, arrested a suspect, Odumegwu Obijofor, for producing and distributing Skuchies, a mixture of blackcurrant and illicit drugs.
No fewer than 2,480 litres of the New Psychoactive Substance (NPS) were recovered from his clandestine factory when he was arrested.
In Cross River State, while Ogar Emmanuel was arrested with 2.5kg of cannabis at Ukpada Utugwan village, 29 sacks of the same substance weighing 290kg were recovered from the warehouse of another suspect, Usani Ikpi, who is currently at large.
Three suspects: Sa’adu Sule, 23; Mukhtar Nura, 23; and Hamza Nura, 18, were nabbed at Jabiri Funtua, Katsina State on Friday, May 24, with 129 blocks of cannabis weighing 70kg coming from Ogere, Ogun State.
About five suspects, including Ezekiel Munda, 30, and Sule Mustapha, 21, were arrested by NDLEA operatives on Thursday, May 23, during raids at Karu Abattoir, Jikwoyi and the Tora Bora hill area of FCT, Abuja, where 95.01kg of cannabis and different quantities of opioids were recovered.
In Edo State, operatives arrested a physically challenged drug dealer, Zekere Sufianu, 45, in Auchi town on Wednesday May 22. At the time of his arrest, he was found with 751gm of Loud, 178gm of Tramadol and Swinol pills.
