ABUJA, Nigeria – Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, have apprehended a 48-year-old Paris-bound businessman, Emmanuel Orjinze, with 111 wraps of cocaine in his stomach.
The arrest occurred at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, during the outward clearance of an Air France flight AF 878 to Paris, France.
According to a statement issued on Sunday, May 26, 2024, by Femi Babafemi, NDLEA Director of Media & Advocacy, the arrest took place on Tuesday, May 21.
After a body scan confirmed that Orjinze had ingested illicit drugs, he was taken into custody, where he excreted a total of 111 pellets of cocaine, weighing 1.603 kilograms, over three days.
The suspect claimed to be involved in the maritime sector while also scouting for opportunities as a professional footballer in Europe.
In a related development, NDLEA officers at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Ikeja, Lagos, dismantled another drug trafficking syndicate.
The operation led to the arrest of four syndicate members and the seizure of 8 kilograms of methamphetamine and 7.60 kilograms of Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis imported from South Africa.
The syndicate was exposed when an airport official was intercepted with a backpack and a bag containing the illicit substances.
Follow-up operations at Ajao Estate, Lagos, led to the arrest of two other syndicate members, Chris Nwadozie and Chinedu Nwaosu.
Further investigation resulted in the arrest of another cartel member within the airport system on Saturday, May 25.
At the NAHCO export shed of Lagos airport, NDLEA operatives arrested a freight agent, Sonubi Mariam Abiodun, for attempting to export 8 parcels of cocaine weighing 2 kilograms concealed in three paint buckets containing shea butter to the United Kingdom on Wednesday, May 22.
In another operation in Igbo Elerin, Ojo local government area, Lagos, NDLEA officers arrested Odumegwu Obijofor for producing and distributing skuchies, a mixture of black currant and illicit drugs.
They recovered 2,480 liters of the New Psychoactive Substance (NPS) from his clandestine factory.
In Cross River state, Ogar Emmanuel was arrested with 2.5 kilograms of cannabis at Ukpada Utugwan village.
Additionally, 29 sacks of cannabis weighing 290 kilograms were recovered from the warehouse of another suspect, Usani Ikpi, who remains at large.
In Katsina state, three suspects, Sa’adu Sule (23), Mukhtar Nura (23), and Hamza Nura (18), were arrested in Jabiri Funtua on Friday, May 24, with 129 blocks of cannabis weighing 70 kilograms.
NDLEA operatives also conducted raids in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja, arresting five suspects, including Ezekiel Munda (30) and Sule Mustapha (21), at Karu Abattoir, Jikwoyi, and Tora Bora hill areas.
The raids resulted in the recovery of 95.01 kilograms of cannabis and various quantities of opioids.
In Edo state, operatives arrested a physically challenged notorious drug dealer, Zekere Sufianu (45), in Auchi town on Wednesday, May 22. He was found with 751 grams of Loud, 178 grams of tramadol, and pills of swinol at the time of his arrest.
These operations underscore the NDLEA’s continued efforts to combat drug trafficking and distribution across Nigeria.
