NDLEA Arrests India-Bound Nigerian With Cocaine, Recovers N3.6Billion Worth Of Drugs In Lagos | Sahara Reporters
According to the NDLEA, a search of his check-in bag uncovered the cocaine factory-fitted into its side walls and railings.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 48-year-old businessman, Nwankwo Innocent Onyebuchi, with 1.55 kilogrammes of cocaine concealed in his travel bag at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos.
Onyebuchi, who deals in marbles in Lagos, was arrested at the departure hall of Terminal II while attempting to board a Qatar Airways flight to New Delhi, India.
According to the NDLEA, a search of his check-in bag uncovered the cocaine factory-fitted into its side walls and railings.
The agency said the suspect confessed that he had sold his marble business and other assets to raise N23 million to purchase the consignment, which he hoped to sell in India for as much as N100 million.
In another operation in Lagos, NDLEA operatives raided a warehouse at Hakeem Dosumu Street, Ago Palace area of Okota, where they recovered 3,776 cartons containing 377,600 bottles of codeine-based syrup valued at more than N2.6 billion.
The agency said the seizure was made between Friday, August 7, and Saturday, August 8, following credible intelligence.
NDLEA operatives also arrested a 55-year-old suspected drug kingpin, Shoremi Kayode, during a raid on his residence in Ipaja, Lagos, recovering 324 kilogrammes of Colorado, a synthetic strain of cannabis, valued at N972 million.
Two vehicles, a Mercedes-Benz and a Toyota Corolla, were also recovered from him.
The NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, in a statement on Sunday, said the operations were part of the agency’s ongoing intelligence-led efforts to disrupt the illicit drug trade.
The agency said the suspects remain in custody and will be prosecuted in accordance with the law.