Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have successfully intercepted significant drug shipments at the Tincan Seaport in Lagos and the Port Harcourt Port Complex, Onne, in Rivers State.
These operations were part of a coordinated intelligence-driven effort to combat drug trafficking during the busy Christmas and New Year season.
At the Tincan seaport, two large consignments of methamphetamine and Loud, a potent synthetic strain of cannabis, were uncovered. The first seizure, made on December 12, 2024, involved 5.001 kg of methamphetamine hidden in a Toyota Camry car, packed in a bed sheet. The shipment came from Canada and was en route to the Ladipo automobile parts market in Lagos. A businessman, Isaac Onwumere, was arrested in connection with this find.
The second seizure, on December 13, 2024, revealed 867.5 kg of Loud packed into 44 jumbo bags, alongside 78.3 kg of methamphetamine in six plastic coolers. The shipment, which also originated in Canada, was destined for a warehouse in the same market. Two individuals, Nwanolue Emeka and Friday Ogbe, were arrested in connection with the shipment.
The combined value of the intercepted drugs is staggering: the methamphetamine alone is worth approximately N124.95 million, while the Loud has an estimated street value of N2.17 billion. These successful operations followed months of tracking the shipments across three continents, from Canada to Antwerp, Belgium, and finally to Lagos.
At the Port Harcourt Port Complex, NDLEA operatives seized 636,600 bottles of codeine-based syrup with an estimated street value of N4.46 billion. These bottles, which were in shipments from India, were intercepted on December 9, 11, and 13, 2024. The seizures were made during a joint examination of four containers, carried out with the assistance of Customs and other security agencies.
These recent successes underscore the NDLEA’s ongoing commitment to its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA). The agency has been actively engaging communities, schools, and workplaces across Nigeria with sensitization campaigns, aiming to raise awareness about the dangers of drug abuse and trafficking.
Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), NDLEA Chairman/CEO, commended the efforts of the Special Operations Units at Tincan and Onne, urging drug barons and cartels to cease their illegal activities. He emphasized that NDLEA’s intelligence network and operational capacity are now more advanced than ever, enabling the agency to track and intercept drug shipments before they reach Nigeria.
