The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has arrested a
fleeing drug kingpin, and other six members of his drug syndicate gang
operating at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, in Lagos State.
The anti-narcotic agency said their arrest followed a string
of fresh offensives against drug cartels across Nigeria.
The NDELA spokesman, Femi Babafemi, in a statement on
Wednesday, said the syndicate was behind the smuggling of 1, 584,000 tablets of
Tramadol seized by the agency on Tuesday 15th March 2022.
The statement was titled, ‘NDLEA arrests 5 members of
airport drug syndicate, recovers N19.8m cash from ring leader’.
The statement read, “The Lagos airport drug syndicate was
behind the smuggling of 1, 584,000 tablets of Tramadol seized on Tuesday 15th
March by NDLEA operatives in collaboration with Aviation Security (AVSEC) and
Customs service personnel at the airport. The seizure includes 17 cartons of 250mg
Tramadol branded as “Tamra” weighing 669.70kg and five cartons of 225mg
Tramadol under the brand name “Royal” with a gross weight of 217.15kg.
“The psychotropic substance, which was imported into the
country from Pakistan was smuggled through the airport tarmac using one of the
vehicles of the Skyway Aviation Handling Company (SAHCO) and was intercepted at
the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) Personnel Yard. Two suspects:
Ofijeh John Mowa, a SAHCO driver, and Nyam Gazu Alex who is a security guard
with the Nigerian Aviation Handling Company (NAHCO) were initially arrested in
connection with the seizure.
“Further investigations by NDLEA operatives however led to
the arrest of five other persons involved in the crime including the
ringleader, Yunana Fidelis who fled Lagos to Kaduna the moment their lid was
blown open. Others include: Adesanwo Temitope; Owoseni Taiwo Temidayo;
Fasoranti Shola and Bamigbade Jonathan.
“Yunana Fidelis who
is also a staff of NACHO had escaped and fled to Kaduna after depositing
Nineteen Million Eight Hundred Thousand Naira (N19, 800,000.00) cash with a BDC
operator to be paid later into his bank account.
“After tracking him for days in Kaduna, on Friday 25th
Fidelis relocated to Abuja where he was eventually arrested by NDLEA operatives
at 7pm on Sunday 27th March while he was trying to collect One Million Naira
(N1, 000, 000.00) cash from an undercover agent who posed as a BDC operator. In
addition to recovering the cash Fidelis deposited with the BDC operator in Lagos,
the Agency had also placed a post no debit order on his identified bank
accounts.
“Meanwhile, a professional methamphetamine (Mkpuru Mmiri)
cook, Reuben Bekweri, 34, has been arrested in Owerri while trying to
distribute a kilogram of the illicit drug he cooked and packaged in seven nylon
sachets in the Irete Area of Imo state capital on Saturday 26th March.
“In Ado Ekiti, narcotic officers on Monday 28th March also
arrested a 42-year-old lawyer, Mr. Mayowa Oluwanisomo, in Zone 4, Embassy
Island, Moferere area of the Ekiti state capital following credible
intelligence that he deals in psychotropic substances. A total of 11, 570
tablets of Tramadol weighing 7.3kilograms were recovered from him when his
residence was searched. He admitted ownership of the drug exhibits, adding that
he graduated from Ekiti State University, Ado Ekiti and Abuja campus of the
Nigerian Law School in 2016.”
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