NDLEA intercepts over 600,000 opioid pills in nationwide operations

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has announced multiple seizures and arrests across the country, intercepting hundreds of thousands of opioid pills, destroying large cannabis farms, and recovering illicit substances in different states.

According to NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi, operatives intercepted 104,900 capsules of tramadol concealed in a fuel tanker at the Abuja-Kaduna toll gate on Friday, August 29. A suspect was arrested in connection with the consignment.

In Zaria, Kaduna State, another suspect was arrested with 34.15kg of cannabis sativa, while in Maiduguri, Borno State, NDLEA officers arrested a man found with 30,640 pills of tramadol, 7,940 tablets of rohypnol, and ?7.9m cash.

The agency also reported the arrest of a 75-year-old man and others in Anambra State with various quantities of cannabis and opioids, while in Taraba, a 71.5-hectare cannabis farm was destroyed, with over 178,000kg of cannabis set ablaze.

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Further operations across Nasarawa, Adamawa, Kano, Edo, Ondo, Lagos, and Ekiti states led to the seizure of over 500,000 opioid pills, processed cannabis, codeine-based syrup, and other narcotics, with several suspects taken into custody.

In what the agency described as one of the largest seizures of its kind in Ekiti State, NDLEA operatives recovered 5.3kg of “Loud” and “Colorado” strains of cannabis and a small quantity of methamphetamine from a location in Ado-Ekiti.

The NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended officers for the operations and urged continued efforts under the War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) campaign. The agency also carried out sensitization activities in schools, communities, worship centres, and traditional institutions nationwide during the week.