The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has recovered 589 bags of Canadian Loud, a potent strain of cannabis, weighing 417.3 kilogrammes and valued at ₦1.04 billion, during a raid on an 80-room hotel in Victoria Island, Lagos.
According to a statement on Sunday by NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi, the newly established five-storey hotel, identified as The Hook Hotel, also known as Caesar Hotel and Caesar Lounge, was allegedly being used as a cover for the distribution of illicit substances.
Babafemi said the seizure was made after several hours of searching the hotel rooms. Three suspects — Eze Ayitu, Ofuokwu Samuel, and Emmanuel Ameh — were arrested during the operation conducted between Friday and Saturday, while two others, Noble Philip and one Kenneth, remain at large.
Recovered from the premises were vehicles and other items suspected to be proceeds of the drug trade, including a Toyota Prado Landcruiser Jeep (Lagos AKD 472 OZ), a Toyota Sienna (Lagos KJA 79 HJ), a Volkswagen Delivery Van (Lagos AAA 525 JE), a Kia Cerato (Lagos BDG 860 GQ), and a Grand Caravan Dodge (Lagos APP 847 YF). Also seized were 74 new television sets, 10 used television sets, and 13 refrigerators.
In a separate operation in Jigawa State, NDLEA operatives, acting on intelligence, intercepted a shipment of opioids being transported from Kano to Niger Republic and Yobe State. Two suspects, Abba Ibrahim, 28, and Shuaibu Umar, 29, were arrested around 2:30 a.m. on Wednesday along the Kano-Ringim road, Gumel town, while moving the drugs in a Toyota Sienna vehicle.
Seized from the vehicle were 200,000 pills of tramadol 250mg and 217,500 capsules of pregabalin. A follow-up operation in Kano led to the arrest of the supplier, 41-year-old Jamilu Muhammad, at his residence in Mil Tara, Layin Technical area, where authorities recovered an additional 1,584,000 pills of tramadol hidden inside a Nissan 18-seater bus and a room, bringing the total number of recovered pills to 2,001,500.
Meanwhile, at a courier firm in Lagos, NDLEA officers of the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation (DOGI) last Wednesday intercepted 46 wraps of cocaine weighing 547 grammes concealed in body cream destined for the Middle East. On the same day, another consignment containing 1.8 kilogrammes of pentazocine injection and 60 grammes of bromazepam tablets heading to Canada was also intercepted.
At the Seme border area of Badagry, Lagos State, three Ghanaian women — Haziza Zubairu, 42; Samirat Mustapha, 43; and Jamila Salifu, 26 — were arrested at Gbaji checkpoint while attempting to smuggle 4.8 kilogrammes of Ghana Loud cannabis into Nigeria.
In Kano, NDLEA operatives arrested a 60-year-old woman, Safiya Shamsu, with 5.6 kilogrammes of skunk at Samegu, Kumbotso local government area, and another suspect, Muntari Labaran, 35, was apprehended in Yelwa area, Dala local government, with 100 litres of codeine syrup.
Additionally, NDLEA operatives in Edo State destroyed 3,814.9 kilogrammes of skunk on two farms in Ugbodu community, Ovia North East local government area, last Thursday. Three suspects — Samuel Samson, 26; Daniel Peter, 20; and Abel Edah, 31 — were arrested during the operation.
Babafemi noted that the agency’s War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) advocacy activities continued nationwide over the past week.
Meanwhile, NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended officers of DOGI, Lagos, Kano, Jigawa, Edo, and Seme Commands for their efforts in arrests and seizures. He also praised commands across the country for balancing efforts between drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction.
Nzubechukwu Eze.
