Large consignments of codeine-based syrup and Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis, worth over N2.185 billion in street value, have been intercepted at the Port Harcourt seaports, Onne and Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos State by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency.
The Director of Media and Advocacy of the NDLEA, Femi Babafemi, made this known in a statement he issued on Sunday.
According to Babafemi, at the Lagos airport, NDLEA officers with the cooperation of other security agencies on May 31, 2024 intercepted a large consignment of Loud, packed in eight suitcases, containing 320 parcels, with a total weight of 164.50kg of the strong psychoactive substance coming from Canada on a KLM flight via Amsterdam, Netherlands.
The consignment, estimated to be worth N960 million, which was brought in by a passenger, Ughenu Nnaife Francis, was discovered at the E-Arrival hall of the airport by operatives of the NDLEA, Nigeria Customs Service and others during a joint search operation by the security operatives while the suspect was attempting to smuggle the suitcases out of the hall.
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Preliminary investigation revealed that the suspect is resident in Germany, but travelled to Toronto, Canada to transport the drug to Nigeria.
During his interview, Francis claimed that he was recruited as a mule to convey the drug to Nigeria for an agreed fee of N6 million.
At the Port Harcourt Ports Complex, NDLEA operatives on May 27, 2024 intercepted a container marked TEMU 6807401 imported from India enroute C to C bonded terminal in Enugu.
During a joint examination of the container by NDLEA, Customs and other security agencies, 1,750 cartons of codeine weighing 26,250kg, containing 175,000 bottles of the opioid, worth N1.225 million in street value, were discovered.
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