Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a couple, Bolanle Lookman Dauda and Olayinka Dauda heading a cocaine trafficking cartel in Lagos and Ogun States.
During the operations, together with the Drug Enforcement Administration of the United States, multi-billion-naira worth of the illicit drug were recovered, including 42 blocks of the Class A drug weighing 47.5 kilograms.
The NDLEA disclosed this in a statement by NDLEA’s Director, Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, on Tuesday
The couple were arrested on the 25th May 2024 at Ibiye along the Lagos-Badagry expressway, while attempting to cross the land border to deliver the consignment in Ghana.
“A swift follow-up operation in their residence at Plot 24/25 OPIC extension, Petedo road, Agbara, Ogun state, led to the recovery of an additional eight blocks of the same drug weighing 10kg, bringing the total weight of the cocaine seized from the couple to 57.5 kilograms,” the statement read in part.
In another raid by the special operation unit, Babafemi said no fewer than 1,100 ampoules of lethal synthetic opioid, fentanyl weighing 6.48kg, were recovered from a member of a drug trafficking syndicate, 34-year-old Ikeh Ifeanyi at the popular Idumota market in Lagos Island.
Also, 790 ampoules of the dangerous opioid weighing 5.273kg were equally seized from another member of the fentanyl syndicate, 48-year-old Chieze Benjamin, who was also arrested at Idumota market.
Fentanyl, a lethal synthetic opioid, which is 100 times more potent than heroin is currently responsible for over 70 per cent of overdose deaths, as well as a major contributor to fatal and non-fatal overdoses in the US.
Two other persons: Olayiwola Aremu Kazeem, 37, and Ogunfowora Taofik Ajibola, 35, were also arrested on Lagos Island in a different raid by NDLEA officers with 432 grams of methamphetamine recovered from them.
At the Tincan port in Lagos, NDLEA operatives on 25th May, intercepted 15 parcels of Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis weighing 7.5kg concealed in the doors and body crevices of a Toyota Highlander SUV in a container marked MSMU 7294325. The container declared as containing three units of used vehicles including the Toyota Highlander originated from Toronto and shipped to Nigeria via Montreal, Canada.
“A swift follow-up operation led to the arrest of two suspects: Sunday Sodade and Oriyomi Adesina, who were to receive the vehicle and the drug consignment. A bribe of six million naira offered NDLEA officers by the sender of the container based in Canada through his agent has also been registered as an exhibit for the prosecution of the case,” the statement added.
In his reaction, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig Gen Mohamed Marwa (Retd), commended the officers and men of the special operation unit for their resilience in targeting and taking down drug cartels and barons.
He also praised the result-oriented collaboration between NDLEA and its local and international partners, urging all commands and formations of the agency to remain unrelenting in their offensive action against the drug underworld.
Alleluia is the Assistant Editor and Content Writer at LagosPost.ng. She is a prolific writer and editor, she has written features and news stories on Lifestyle, Sports, Business, Politics and B2B marketing. She is also an event coordinator, host and social media content creator.
