The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) on Wednesday said it seized narcotic drugs valued N3.7 billion at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport (MMIA) Lagos in 2015.
This is contained in a statement issued and signed by the agency’s spokesperson in Lagos, Mr Mitchel Ofoyeju. ”The Agency also received a total of 183 Nigerians made up of 176 males and 7 females deported on drug related offences,” the statement said.
The statement quoted the NDLEA commander at the Lagos airport, Mr Ahmadu Garba as giving the breakdown of seized drugs. According to him, the last arrest in 2015 is that of a 37 year old lady recruited on facebook to smuggle drugs to Malaysia.
”The airport command arrested 122 males and 20 females with 594.002k of drugs valued at 3.7 billion naira. ”The drugs consist of 172kg of cannabis, 160kg of ephedrine, 114kg of methamphetamine, 96kg of cocaine, 45kg of tramadol and 5kg of heroin.
”Interestingly, the last arrest for the year was that of a lady who was recruited by a facebook lover based in Malaysia. ”The suspect Gloria Ezeabata was caught with 1.325kg of methamphetamine on her way to Malaysia.
”One Mr Philip Akpaka, 39, who is the suspected leader of the drug cartel in Nigeria and who prepared the travel documents of Gloria was equally arrested. ”Out of the total number of those arrested, 55 were importing drugs from other countries, 62 others were exporting drugs out of the country, while 25 were arrested within the State,” he said.
The statement also quoted the acting Chairman of the agency, Mrs Roli Bode-George, as saying that the monetary value of seized drugs underscores the threat posed by illicit drug production, trafficking and abuse.
”Drug trafficking is a serious crime capable of undermining our security. ”The Agency is working very hard to seize drugs and financially incapacitate drug trafficking organisations. ”Efforts will be intensified to drastically reduce drug trafficking through continuous arrest and prosecution as well as drug demand reduction programmes.
”We must continue to channel our resources towards a safe and healthy society,” she added.
