Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, have intercepted various quantities of ephedrine, skunk and nitrous oxide, popularly known as laughing gas at Murtala Muhammed International Airport, MMIA, Ikeja.
The illicit drugs were concealed in semovita packs and dry pepper being shipped to South Africa and Kenya by members of Transnational Drug Trafficking Organizations (DTO), some of who were promptly arrested, their mansions raided and their luxury vehicles seized.
The NDLEA spokesman, Femi Babafemi in a news release says, through credible intelligence, NDLEA operatives intercepted a notorious drug trafficker, Suleiman Babatunde Oba who is a member of a cartel distributing Cocaine, Heroin, Methamphetamine and Ephedrine between Nigeria, Brazil, Ghana, South Africa, Mozambique, and Europe.
According to him, the suspected trafficker was arrested while attempting to board a Rwanda Air flight to South Africa with two boxes loaded with ephedrine sealed in semovita packs.
He explained that, the recovered substance is a precursor chemical and active ingredient in the production of methamphetamine.
In his statement, Suleiman who holds a South African passport, married to a South African lady and has lived there for over 20 years, identified Hakeem Babatunde Salami who equally lives in Lagos and South Africa as the head of the drug ring.
A follow up raid in the house of Salami located at 75 Wosilatu Dawodu Street, Ijesha, Aguda area of Surulere, Lagos on Monday 28th August revealed that he had fled the country on the same day Suleiman was arrested.
However, a white Toyota Venza car with registration number LSR 410 HT, a Mercedes Benz SUV marked LSD 998HP, phones and vital documents needed for further investigation were recovered from the house.
Mr. Babafemi recalled in August 2021, the Agency had seized 25.60kg ephedrine from a trafficker, Arua Emmanuel Onwuka at the Lagos airport, a seizure that has also been traced to the same cartel whose identified members are currently on the run.
In the same vein, attempt by another syndicate to export 10.40kg skunk concealed with scent leaf and pepper, going to Nairobi, Kenya, was equally thwarted by NDLEA operatives attached to the NAHCO export shed of the airport on Saturday 26th August.
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p style=”text-align: center;”>A suspect, Ekechukwu Sixtus Ndubuisi, has already been arrested in connection with the seizure.
Another bid to export a consignment of 180 cannisters of laughing gas to South Africa by a freight agent, Oyekola Gbenga Akeem for a fee of Two Million Naira (N2, 000, 000) was also frustrated by operatives who seized the cargo and arrested the suspect.