The operations were disclosed in a statement issued on Sunday by the agency’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi.
Among those arrested was 38-year-old Iwebema Ogechi Peace, who was apprehended at the departure hall of Terminal 2 of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, on June 21 while preparing to board a flight to Beijing, China.
According to the statement, officers acted on credible intelligence before conducting a thorough search of her luggage.
The statement said, “A search of her check-in luggage led to the discovery of four large parcels of cocaine concealed in false bottom professionally created in her bag. The parcels of the Class A drug found hidden in the bag have a combined weight of 7.5 kilograms.”
In another major breakthrough, NDLEA operatives intercepted a 40-foot container loaded with 4,959 kilograms of Canadian Loud cannabis at the Apapa Port during a joint examination involving the Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies on June 23.
The agency explained that the container had been placed under surveillance for more than four weeks before it was intercepted. The shipment reportedly left Toronto, Canada, on April 25, passed through Montreal and Morocco, and eventually arrived in Lagos. The container also carried Ford and Nissan vehicles.
It stated, “A total of 4,959 kilograms of the illicit drug consignment worth N12,397,500,000 in street value was recovered.”
The agency also announced the dismantling of a criminal network that secretly plants illegal drugs inside the bags of unsuspecting passengers travelling by commercial buses.
The breakthrough followed the interception of a Sienna bus travelling from Nnewi, Anambra State, to Abuja. During the operation, officers recovered 467.7 grams of methamphetamine concealed in the luggage of a passenger.
Investigations began after the intended recipient of the package, Gloria Peter, denied ownership of the illicit substance, prompting operatives to trace and arrest the bus loaders in Nnewi.
“The loaders revealed that the drug package was put into the woman’s bag by one of them on the directive of the driver of the bus, Abdurrazak Isah.
“His revelations made the driver open up and mention one of his passengers, Onyebuchi Victor Okoye, as the actual owner of the drug. Onyebuchi was then picked up at Utako, FCT, during another follow-up operation,” the statement said.
In a separate operation at Iddo Motor Park in Lagos, NDLEA operatives arrested 57-year-old Ikechukwu Uwakwe while allegedly transporting 209.5 kilograms of Scottish Loud cannabis to Enugu.
The agency also intercepted a truck transporting illicit drugs from Togo through the Benin Republic and arrested two Beninese nationals, Hossou Tito Julien, 30, and Mancellim Dossou, 19, alongside a Nigerian, Jackson ThankGod.
“A thorough search of the truck led to the recovery of 558,900 pills of Tramadol 250mg concealed in a fabricated compartment of the vehicle,” the statement said.
On the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, operatives arrested Lucky Abonga and Osas Azamobo after discovering 118 kilograms of skunk concealed among legitimate goods in a truck heading for Onitsha, Anambra State.
In another raid at Amukoko, Lagos, officers arrested Helen Ese Idiji, 40, and Rashidat Sa’adullah, 53, with 28.8 kilograms of skunk. Investigators later established that Helen allegedly used Rashidat’s residence as a storage facility before distributing the drugs to customers.
Commending officers involved in the operations, NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (retd.), praised the various commands for their continued commitment to combating drug trafficking nationwide.
Marwa said the officers had maintained “their drug supply reduction efforts balanced with WADA sensitisation activities,” and urged them “not to rest on their oars.”