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The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has detained a Chinese businessman, Liang Tak You, and an 80-year-old grandmother, Mrs. Grace Ekpeme, during a nationwide operation that revealed shipments of Colorado—a synthetic cannabis variant—hidden in moimoi sachets, and Canadian Loud concealed within imported canned food products.
This information was shared by the Director of Media and Advocacy, NDLEA, Femi Babafemi, in Abuja on Sunday.
Babafemi noted that Liang was apprehended at the arrival hall of Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Ikeja, Lagos, on Friday based on actionable intelligence.
“The suspect, who came to Nigeria from Bangkok via Dubai on an Emirates Airlines flight, is a Chinese national, naturalized and residing in Malaysia. He reportedly traveled to Thailand to collect two suitcases containing 50 parcels of Loud, weighing 26.10 kg, before arriving in Nigeria,” Babafemi stated.
In a separate case, Mrs. Grace Ekpeme was arrested early Saturday morning, July 26, at Edet-Nsa Street, Base Site, Calabar South, Cross River State, with over 3 kg of skunk, following intelligence on her drug trafficking activities.
Moreover, in Lagos, NDLEA officers intercepted another suspect, Chidi Agbafo, on Wednesday, July 23, along the Epe–Ajah Expressway while he was transporting 21.7 kg of Colorado—some of which were packaged in moimoi cooking sachets—and 3.8 litres of codeine-based syrup in a bus bound for Warri and Oghara in Delta State.
At the Apapa seaport in Lagos, a joint inspection by NDLEA agents, Customs officials, and other security personnel on Friday, July 25, discovered 101 kg of Canadian Loud.
The drugs were packaged in 202 tins of imported food labeled 'Bean Salad Mix' and concealed in two Toyota Sienna vans within a container that originated from Canada,” the statement added. Meanwhile, along the Abuja-Kaduna highway, NDLEA agents on patrol on Wednesday, July 23, arrested Usman Musa, who was traveling in a commercial bus with 71,000 pills of opioids—including tramadol, diazepam, and Exol-5—en route to Kano.
A follow-up operation on Friday, July 25, resulted in the arrest of her accomplice, Bala Abdullahi, in the same vicinity.
Three brothers—Nanna, Chizom, and Maxwell Ozirinye—were apprehended on Saturday, July 26, when NDLEA operatives descended upon a cannabis plantation in Bending Corner Forest, Idoani, Ose Local Government Area of Ondo State.
They destroyed 2,500 kg of skunk grown on a hectare of land and seized 121.4 kg of processed cannabis. In Edo State, NDLEA agents on Wednesday, July 23, raided Asakpa Community in Benin City, detaining a 26-year-old woman, Bright Sunday Okon.
Various quantities of Colorado, Loud, Arizona, skunk, and methamphetamine were found in her home. Additionally, 105.4 kg of skunk was retrieved from an abandoned Honda vehicle with registration number ABC 204 KM in Keffi, Nasarawa State.
In Niger State, a suspect, Bashir Abdullahi, was arrested on Monday, July 21, with 6,400 pills of 225 mg tramadol at the Kasuwan Gwari area of Minna. In Ogun State, a well-known drug dealer, Jamiu Omolaja, was apprehended, and 113 kg of skunk was confiscated from his hideout in Ifo on Thursday, July 24, following violent resistance from his gang.
Continuing, the NDLEA spokesperson remarked that on Saturday, July 26, officers arrested Adamu Adamu, also known as “Dankyado,” along the Gombe–Bajoga road, with 10,910 capsules of tramadol.
Similarly, operatives in Kogi State on Thursday, July 24, intercepted a shipment of skunk hidden in garri, dried scent leaves, and other food products along the Okene–Lokoja highway.
A follow-up operation in Abuja led to the arrest of a 27-year-old suspect, Kindness Bala, who intended to transport the drugs to Katsina State and then to Qatar.
On Saturday, July 26, the Kogi State Command seized 23,600 pills of tramadol, 300 ampoules of pentazocine injections, and 700 grams of skunk from a truck at a motor park in the Ayingba area of the state.
Despite these arrests, the NDLEA continues its advocacy initiatives under the War Against Drug Abuse campaign across the nation.
Sensitization lectures were conducted at several schools, including Komu/Babaode High School in Oyo State; Beacon Christian Academy in Ebonyi State; Government Day Secondary School in Sokoto State; and Government Junior College in Lagos.
The Anambra State Command also engaged in advocacy visits to the traditional rulers of Awka and Ukpo communities.
Additionally, he commended the officers and men from various commands for their successes in arrests and drug seizure operations, with NDLEA Chairman/CEO Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.) praising all commands nationwide for effectively tackling both drug supply and demand.
