Operatives of the National Drug Law
Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a suspected cocaine kingpin and intercepted illicit drugs with an estimated street value of ₦9.3 billion in a series of intelligence-led operations across the country.
The agency said the prime suspect, 55-year-old businessman Ndubisi Chinedu Onuigbo, was apprehended after investigators traced him to an attempt to export 3.30 kilogrammes of cocaine concealed inside the walls of cartons used to package food items destined for the United Kingdom.
According to the NDLEA, the cocaine consignment was intercepted at the export shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.
Investigations initially led to the arrest of three cargo agents and another suspect who delivered the shipment before operatives tracked down the alleged mastermind.
In a related operation, NDLEA officers arrested a 31-year-old entrepreneur after intercepting 2.8 kilogrammes of “Loud,” a synthetic strain of cannabis, which arrived from the United States on a United Airlines flight.
The anti-narcotics agency also recovered more than 2.2 million pills of Tapentadol 250mg valued at over ₦2.2 billion from a shipment originating from India during a joint cargo examination at the Lagos airport.
At the Apapa Seaport, operatives uncovered thousands of sachets of Canadian Loud concealed inside imported vehicles, while another operation at a Lagos courier facility led to the seizure of tramadol hidden in containers of black soap intended for export to the United Kingdom.
NDLEA spokesman Femi Babafemi said the successful operations underscore the agency’s commitment to dismantling drug trafficking networks and preventing Nigeria from being used as a transit point for illicit narcotics.
He added that investigations are ongoing to identify and apprehend other members of the syndicates.
