The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has announced that its officers have intercepted shipments of methamphetamine and Loud, a potent synthetic strain of cannabis, worth billions of naira.
The drugs were hidden in spare car parts imported from Canada and confiscated at the Tincan port in Lagos.
The NDLEA stated that the seizure of these illicit drugs, intended to be distributed during the Christmas and New Year festive season, came after months of intelligence-driven monitoring on three continents.
This was revealed in a statement on Sunday by Femi Babafemi, Director of Media and Advocacy at the NDLEA headquarters in Abuja. Babafemi revealed that on Thursday, December 12, and Friday, December 13, 2024, two shipments of methamphetamine, with a total weight of 83,301 kilograms, were recovered in separate containers carrying vehicles and spare parts shipped from Canada.
These consignments were headed to the warehouses at the Ladipo automobile spare parts market in the Mushin area of Lagos. This marks a first in the history of NDLEA's counter-narcotics operations.
“One of the containers destined for Ladipo market through the Sifax customs terminal was examined on Thursday, December 12. During the inspection, 5,001 kilograms of methamphetamine were discovered hidden in a bag wrapped in a sheet inside a Toyota Camry. A businessman, Isaac Onwumere, linked to the shipment, was immediately arrested,” Babafemi said.
“The second container, which was inspected on Friday, December 13, was found to contain 1,735 packages of Loud packaged in 44 giant bags, weighing a total of 867.5 kilograms, along with six plastic coolers containing 87 packages. of methamphetamine with a combined weight of 78.3 kilograms. Two businessmen, Nwanolue Emeka and Friday Ogbe, have been arrested in connection with this seizure.
“The two consignments of methamphetamine, weighing 83,301 kilograms, are valued at £124,951,000, while Loud's 867.5 kilograms have a street value of £2,168,750,000.”
The seizures were made during a joint examination of the consignments by NDLEA officers, customs officials and other port stakeholders. These operations followed months of intelligence processing and tracking of shipments from their point of origin in Canada to their arrival at the port of Lagos.
“The first container, containing 5,001 kilograms of methamphetamine, came under NDLEA surveillance on October 4, 2024, when preparations for shipment began in Toronto, Canada. The shipment was monitored throughout its journey, including its loading onto a ship on October 19, its arrival and unloading in Antwerp, Belgium, on October 30, and its transshipment to Lagos, where it arrived on December 1 and was transferred to a customs terminal. on December 3,” Babafemi explained.
“The second shipment, which contained 867.5 kilograms of Loud and 78.3 kilograms of methamphetamine, followed a similar route. It was first marked on October 8, 2024 in Toronto, Canada, and tracked through Montreal, Europe and Lagos, arriving at port on December 6 before being transferred to a terminal on December 10.
Meanwhile, the NDLEA also reported intercepting 636,600 bottles of codeine-based syrup worth £4,456,200,000 on the street. These shipments, coming from India, were seized on Monday, December 9; Wednesday, December 11; and on Friday, December 13, 2024 at Port Harcourt Port Complex, Onne, Rivers State.
Babafemi noted that these seizures were made during joint examinations of four containers by NDLEA agents, Customs officials and other security agencies, based on credible intelligence information.
Reacting to these developments, NDLEA President and CEO, Brig. General Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended the officers and men of the Special Operations Units of the Tincan and Onne Commands for their efforts.
Marwa stated that these operational successes demonstrate the Agency's intelligence network and capability to track drug traffickers and their consignments even before they reach Nigeria.
He warned that drug traffickers would continue to suffer significant losses if they do not abandon their illicit trade.