A 45-year- old ex-convict from Idemili South LGA, Anambra State has been arrested with a carefully concealed 24 parcels of cocaine weighing 4.56kg by the operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency at the Port Harcourt airport.
The suspect by the name of Okechukwu Francis Amaechi is a Brazilian returnee who has just finished serving his jail term for drug trafficking in the South American country.
A statement by the NDLEA Director, Media & Advocacy, Femi Babafemi at its
Headquarters, Sunday 22nd May 2022 in Abuja reviewed that the ex-convict was arrested on Saturday 7th May upon his arrival from Brazil via Doha onboard Qatar Airline flight QR1433.
According to him, the 24 parcels of cocaine were concealed in 12 tyres of lawnmowers imported into the country.
“Preliminary investigations revealed Okechukwu who was arrested and convicted in Brazil for drug offenses completed serving his jail sentence in March 2022, after which he decided to return to Nigeria with three new law
Curiously, each parcel concealed in the tyres of the three lawnmowers bears some unique inscriptions, which are believed to be means of identification of the owners of the drug. The two parcels in one of the tyres of the first lawnmower bear “O LORD” and “HAVE MERCY”. The parcels in one of the tyres of the second mower bear the inscription “IN GOD” and “WE TRUST”, while the third mower has “IJIOMA” and “186.6” inscribed on the two parcels hidden in one of its tyres.
Okechukwu claimed one of his church members gave him the lawnmowers to deliver to his brother in Port Harcourt.”
Consequently, the operatives in one of its major operations across Zamfara, Kogi, Rivers, Kaduna, and Kano states, had also intercepted and recovered not fewer than 37, 876 tablets of pharmaceutical opioids especially Tramadol; 10,884 bottles of codeine, and 825.016 kilograms of cannabis Sativa during raids in the past week.
“In Zamfara state, a Mercedes Benz truck with reg. no. XB 986 AGB from Onitsha to Sokoto was intercepted in Tsafe area on Friday 20th May. Apart from the driver and his assistant that were arrested, three other persons: Alex Chukwuemeka, 37; Ignatius Mokwe Odikpo, 47, and Andrew Chijokwe, 47 who are owners of the drug exhibits were arrested in a follow-up operation at a hotel in Gusau while waiting to receive the consignment for possible movement to Sokoto. Seized from them include 9,900 bottles of codeine, 599.3kg cannabis, and 15,889 tablets of other opioids.
In Kogi state, a fake security agent, Richard Agada was arrested on Wednesday 18th May while conveying 10 bags of cannabis Sativa weighing 116.8kg in a white Nissan van. Various quantities of opioids and cannabis were equally seized in two separate operations the previous Tuesday and Monday in other parts of the state with the arrest of a drug dealer, Ayuba Nda Isah, 32.
Three suspects: Nornu Abanne;
Yirakpoa Emmanuel and Dornu Gbarazia were arrested at Kaani community and Bori with 90kg cannabis and 1.5gram of Cocaine on Wednesday 18th May.
In Kaduna, three suspects: Nura Salis, Bawa Musa, and Charity Jacob were arrested on Tuesday 17th of May at Warri Street within the state capital with 4,900 tablets of Tramadol, 890 ampoules of Diazepam injection, 257 ampoules of pentazocine injection, 1,950 tablets of Nitrazepam and 830 tablets of Carbazapine.
Equally, in Kano state, a drug dealer, Abubakar Abdullahi, 47, with 5,970 capsules and tablets of Tramadol was arrested, while Nasiru Musa and Musa Mohammed were also nabbed with 5,000 caps of the same drug on Tuesday 17th May.”
Prior to this, the Chairman/Chief Executive of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd) commended the officers and men across the state for their professional conduct, thus advocating for the need to win the war against drug abuse and trafficking even as he charged all commands of the Agency to take an advocacy message to communities and schools so as to change the narrative of drug trafficking in Nigeria.
