By Uche Onyeali
National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, has arrested a 72-year-old grandmother, Mrs Christy Ejaro, in Warri, Delta State, with several sachets of skunk packaged in retail sizes.
This was disclosed in a statement in Abuja yesterday by its Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi.
Babafemi said Ejaro was arrested on June 25 by the agency’s operatives at Niger CAT area of Delta State.
Similarly, at Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, NDLEA operatives on Friday intercepted a Maputo, Mozambique-based bar attendant, Chibuzor Emmanuel, with illicit drugs.
The spokesman added that a search of Emmanuel’s luggage led to the discovery of 17 cardboard size parcels of methamphetamine weighing 17.500 kilogrammes.
He said the suspect was also in possession of three parcels of cocaine weighing 3.050 kilogrammes.
He noted that the 38-year-old suspect was coming from Johannesburg, South Africa, via Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on board Ethiopian Airlines flight.
On suspicion of his luggage, he said Emmanuel was subjected to a search during which the illicit drugs, concealed in bedsheets were discovered.
Also, another passenger on board the same Ethiopian Airlines flight, 54-year-old Azu Kpodar, was also intercepted at the airport by NDLEA operatives.
“When Kpodar, who arrived from Sao Paulo, Brazil, was searched, a liquid soap plastic container marked YPE was discovered in his luggage.
“The substance was promptly taken for analysis at the NDLEA forensic and chemical laboratory in Enugu, where ir tested positive to cocaine.
“The substance which turned out to be liquid cocaine weighed 1.250kg, he said.
“The suspect, who is a toy vendor in Brinquedo, Sao Paulo, claimed that he purchased the substance while shopping for his wedding ceremony in Nigeria,” he said.
In another development, NDLEA operatives at Seme border area of Badagry in Lagos on June 24, apprehended a 26-year-old Beninese, Vode Jean-Luck.
Babafemi said Jean-Luck was arrested while trying to smuggle 69 balls of skunk, a strain of cannabis with a gross weight of 29.5kg, from Benin Republic into Nigeria.
Also in Kwara State, a notorious drug dealer, Bolanle Oladele (aka Iya Nafi) was arrested on Wednesday, June 25, when operatives of the anti-narcotics agency raided her base in Omu-Aran in Irepodun Local Government Area.
Babafemi said various quantities of skunk, tramadol and flunitrazepam were recovered from Oladele.
The NDLEA chairman, Buba Marwa commended the officers and men of Delta, Kwara and Seme Commands of the agency for the arrests and seizures last week.
Marwa equally praised their counterparts in commands across the country for ensuring a fair balance between drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction.
