The National Drug Law Enforcement agency, NDLEA says it has intercepted a large consignment of cocaine ingeniously concealed inside the heads of imported dry stock fish, popularly known as “Okporoko,” in Lagos.
The discovery according to the spokesman for the NDLEA, Mr. Femi Babafemi, followed intelligence on a transnational syndicate involved in shipping illicit drugs, particularly to India.
Acting on the tip-off, he says, operatives of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, MMIA Strategic Command carried out a targeted operation in the Ojo area, leading to the arrest of a 36-year-old suspect believed to be a key figure in the network.
Recovered from his possession were hundreds of cocaine wraps weighing nearly six kilograms, hidden in three jumbo bags and bound for Delhi.
In a separate operation, NDLEA officers also intercepted illicit consignments at a courier company in Lagos destined for the United Kingdom.
The shipments included methamphetamine concealed in automobile filters, as well as dangerous opioids such as morphine sulphate and fentanyl.
The crackdown extended to other parts of Lagos, where operatives dismantled a notorious drug distribution network in Yaba.
A 46-year-old woman, widely known as “Iya Ghana,” was arrested alongside an associate, with large quantities of a potent cannabis strain recovered.
Another suspect the statement revealed was apprehended in Surulere with additional consignments of the same substance.
Beyond Lagos, the agency’s operations spread nationwide.
In Ekiti State, an 80-year-old man was arrested during a raid that uncovered illicit drugs, while a separate operation in neighbouring Ondo State led to the seizure of a significant cache of psychoactive substances from an uncompleted building.
Mr. Babafemi says these operations stress its sustained commitment to dismantling drug trafficking networks and curbing the flow of illicit substances within and beyond Nigeria’s borders.
Reporting By Nosa Aituamen