The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, has arrested a 60-year-old grandmother, a pregnant woman and others over drug related offences.
The suspects were arrested during interdiction operations which resulted to the recovery of 5,527.15 kilograms of methamphetamine and cannabis sativa, as well as 132,090 tablets of tramadol and 2,000 bottles of codeine, by the operatives of the agency.
Femi Babafemi, spokesperson of the NDLEA, said the arrests were made across five states and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, in the past week.
According to him, the grandmother, Ibinosun Sandra Esther, was arrested in Ibadan, Oyo State, in a follow up operation following the seizure of 5.5 kg of the loud variant of cannabis imported into the country from South Africa.
The consignment, which she claimed was sent to her by her daughter, was concealed in two giant speakers as part of a consolidated cargo that arrived at the NAHCO import shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, on board an Air Peace Airline flight.
In a related development, the NDLEA operatives on Saturday, intercepted 1.4 kilograms of methamphetamine concealed inside custard tins packed among cosmetics and foodstuffs going to Brazil via Doha on a Qatar Airways flight.
A cargo agent, Salako Omolara Fausat, who brought the bag containing the illicit drug to the airport, and an intending passenger to Brazil, Anyanwu Christian, who was to travel with the consignment, were promptly arrested.
Mr Babafemi added that, another attempt by a freight agent, Adebisi Aina Hafsat, to export 3,000 tablets of tramadol concealed in motor spare parts to Banjul, Gambia, through the NAHCO export shed was equally thwarted by operatives who seized the consignment and arrested her on Monday.
According to him, a follow up operation to Ebute-Meta area of Lagos the following day, Tuesday 29th Nov led to the arrest of the actual owner, Afam Chibuke Stanley, who is a spare parts seller.
This was followed by the seizure of 100,000 tablets of Royal brand of Tramadol 200 mg with a gross weight of 68.90 kilograms imported from Karachi, Pakistan, on Ethiopian Airlines at the SAHCO import shed.
In Abuja, he said, operatives stormed the warehouse of a notorious drug lord and an ex-convict, Ibrahim Momoh, alias Ibrahim Bendel, who escaped from prison custody to return to his criminal trade, and recovered 81 jumbo bags of cannabis weighing 1,278kgs.
The spokesman added that though the fleeing drug dealer is still at large and is wanted by the agency, his warehouse keeper, a 55-year-old Ghanaian, Richard Forson Gordon, was arrested.
He explained that Ibrahim Momoh was first arrested on 27th November, 2014 with the same substance weighing 385.1kgs, prosecuted, convicted, and sentenced to seven and a half years in prison on 22nd of April, 2020 but escaped from jail after three months.
