Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency have intercepted more than 1.3 million pills and capsules of tramadol and other opioids, as well as about 6,000 kilograms of cannabis, in a series of operations across eight states and the Federal Capital Territory.
The agency said the seizures, which had a combined estimated street value of more than N3.4 billion, were recorded in Lagos, Edo, Niger, Delta, Ondo, Gombe, Imo and other locations.
Among the largest seizures was 603.75 kilograms of Canadian Loud, a synthetic cannabis strain, recovered from a 40-foot container at Tin-Can Island Port in Lagos.
According to the agency, the shipment arrived from Montreal, Canada, on September 12 and was placed under surveillance following intelligence received by NDLEA operatives.
A joint physical examination of the container with the Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies on September 16 uncovered 1,200 parcels of Canadian Loud concealed inside 31 black jumbo bags.
The bags had been loaded into two Toyota Sienna vehicles found inside the container. NDLEA valued the seized cannabis at N1.81 billion.
In Delta State, operatives arrested a 49-year-old man, Innocent Ekpe, along the Benin-Onitsha Expressway in Asaba on September 16.
NDLEA said Mr Ekpe was found with 292.48 kilograms of skunk concealed in a silver Toyota Sienna bus. Investigators subsequently established that he had allegedly impersonated a senior police officer.
The agency said he had allegedly used a forged identification card bearing the name Godwin Emeka, described as a deputy superintendent of police, to avoid scrutiny at checkpoints while transporting illicit drugs.
A 39-year-old alleged accomplice, Nduka Joseph, was also arrested during the operation, according to the agency.
In Edo State, NDLEA operatives acting on intelligence arrested 45-year-old Matthew Ossai at a location on Agbor Road in Benin City.
The agency said Mr Ossai had used an auto-repair workshop as a front for storing illicit drugs. Officers recovered 48 kilograms of Canadian Loud and 152 grams of methamphetamine from the premises.
In another operation, NDLEA officers in Niger State arrested three young men along the Abuja-Kaduna Expressway at Chachi, in Tafa Local Government Area.
The agency identified the suspects as Bashir Usman, 20; Abubakar Nuhu, 18; and Abdulrahman Abdulwahab, 18. It said they were found with two locally fabricated AK-47 rifles, a magazine, a locally made pistol and nine rounds of 9mm ammunition.
NDLEA also reported the seizure of more than 1.1 million assorted tramadol tablets and capsules, codeine syrup, methamphetamine and Exol tablets from two suspects arrested along the Abaji-Abuja Highway.
The suspects, Aminu Isyaku, 23, and Jamilu Habibu, 25, were arrested on September 18 while allegedly transporting the substances from Onitsha, Anambra State, to Mararaba in Nasarawa State.
In Lagos, officers arrested Onyeka Ofor at his residence in Aguda, Surulere, where 48,900 pills of tramadol, each containing 225 milligrams, were recovered, according to the agency.
NDLEA also said seven cartons of cannabis sativa weighing 59 kilograms were intercepted at a logistics company, leading to the arrest of a suspect identified as Luke Ugokwe.
Separately, Ibrahim Hudu, 43, was arrested at Apongbo in Lagos on September 17 with 998.38 kilograms of nitrous oxide gas, the agency said.
In Gombe State, NDLEA said 154,480 tramadol capsules were recovered from two suspects, Sabi’u Umar, 27, and Hassana Muhammad, 19.
The two suspects were arrested separately at Barunde area and Gombe Main Market on September 18, according to the agency.
In Imo State, a suspect identified as Ilesinachi Godwin, 25, was arrested along the Owerri-Onitsha Road with 43.85 kilograms of skunk, NDLEA said.
The agency said the operations formed part of its continuing efforts to intercept illicit drugs and dismantle networks involved in their movement across the country.