Fake Police ID, Mechanic Workshop Expose Drug Trafficking Tactics in ₦3.4bn NDLEA Bust
Fake Police ID, Mechanic Workshop Expose Drug Trafficking Tactics in ₦3.4bn NDLEA Bust
Nigeria’s fight against illicit drugs has uncovered increasingly elaborate trafficking methods after operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, arrested a suspected trafficker accused of impersonating a senior police officer and another suspect allegedly using an auto-repair workshop as a cover for storing drugs.
The arrests formed part of intelligence-led operations across Lagos, Edo, Niger, Delta, Ondo, Gombe and Imo states as well as the Federal Capital Territory, during which the agency intercepted illicit substances with an estimated street value exceeding ₦3.4 billion.
According to the NDLEA, more than 1.3 million pills and capsules of tramadol and other opioids were intercepted alongside about 6,000 kilograms of cannabis.
One of the most significant discoveries was made along the Benin-Onitsha Expressway in Asaba, Delta State, where NDLEA operatives arrested 49-year-old Innocent Ekpe on September 16.
The agency alleged that Ekpe had been impersonating a senior police officer as part of a strategy to avoid scrutiny at security checkpoints while transporting illicit drugs between states.
He was allegedly caught with 292.48 kilograms of skunk concealed in a silver Toyota Sienna.
NDLEA said its investigation indicated that the suspect had been presenting himself as “Godwin Emeka,” a Deputy Superintendent of Police, using an allegedly forged police identification card.
A 39-year-old suspect, Nduka Joseph, was also arrested in connection with the operation.
In another operation highlighting the methods allegedly being adopted to conceal illicit drug activities, NDLEA operatives raided an auto-repair workshop on Agbor Road in Benin City, Edo State.
The agency arrested 45-year-old Matthew Ossai, alleging that the mechanic workshop was being used as a front for storing illicit substances.
Officers recovered 48 kilograms of Canadian Loud and 152 grammes of methamphetamine from the location.
The nationwide operation also uncovered a major international drug shipment at the Tin-Can Island Port in Lagos.
NDLEA said a 40-foot container shipped from Montreal, Canada, which arrived on September 12, was placed under surveillance following intelligence received by the agency.
A joint physical examination involving NDLEA operatives, the Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies subsequently uncovered 1,200 parcels of Canadian Loud weighing 603.75 kilograms.
The consignment, valued at about ₦1.81 billion, was allegedly concealed inside 31 black jumbo bags loaded into two Toyota Sienna vehicles contained in the shipment.
Another major interception took place along the Abaji-Abuja Highway, where two suspects, Aminu Isyaku, 23, and Jamilu Habibu, 25, were arrested on September 18.
NDLEA said more than 1.1 million assorted tramadol tablets and capsules, codeine syrup, methamphetamine and Exol tablets were recovered from eight sacks allegedly being transported from Onitsha, Anambra State, to Mararaba in Nasarawa State.
The agency also reported an arms-related discovery during a patrol along the Abuja-Kaduna Expressway at Chachi in Tafa Local Government Area of Niger State.
Three suspects — Bashir Usman, 20; Abubakar Nuhu, 18; and Abdulrahman Abdulwahab, 18 — were arrested after operatives allegedly recovered two locally fabricated AK-47 rifles, a locally made pistol, magazines and nine rounds of 9mm ammunition concealed inside a travel bag.
In Lagos, NDLEA operatives arrested Onyeka Ofor at his Aguda, Surulere residence after allegedly recovering 48,900 tramadol pills.
Seven cartons of cannabis weighing 59 kilograms were separately intercepted at a logistics company, while another suspect was arrested at Apongbo with 998.38 kilograms of nitrous oxide gas.
The agency recorded further seizures in Gombe, where 154,480 tramadol capsules were recovered from two suspects, while another suspect was arrested along the Owerri-Onitsha Road in Imo State with 43.85 kilograms of skunk.
In Ondo State, four suspects were arrested during a raid on a two-hectare cannabis farm in Ita-Ogbolu Forest.
NDLEA said approximately 5,000 kilograms of cannabis was destroyed during the operation, while another 48 kilograms of dried and fresh cannabis was recovered as evidence for prosecution.
The scale and methods uncovered during the operations underscore the challenge facing security agencies as suspected traffickers increasingly employ legitimate occupations, impersonation, interstate transport routes, logistics networks and international cargo channels in attempts to move illicit substances.
NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), commended officers involved in the operations for what he described as their professionalism and intelligence-driven approach.
He urged commands nationwide to sustain the agency’s combination of enforcement operations and preventive campaigns against drug abuse.
The NDLEA also said its War Against Drug Abuse sensitisation programme continued during the week, with enlightenment activities conducted in schools and communities across several states.
