The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, arrested two of the cartel’s kingpins and busted another Tramadol cartel in Lagos over the weekend by seizing millions of opioid pills and bottles worth more than N5 billion from their warehouse in the Amuwo Odofin area of the state.

On Saturday, January 14, 2023, the agency’s anti-narcotics officers also discovered and demolished a clandestine skuchies laboratory in a remote area of Sagamu, Ogun state, from which several pieces of equipment and various quantities of illegal materials used to produce the dangerous new psychoactive substance in bulk were Recovered.

The NDLEA’s spokesman, Femi Babafemi, said in a statement on Sunday that the drug cartels were hit first on Tuesday, January 10, when hardworking agents of the Agency seized an imported shipment of Loud, a potent variety of cannabis, weighing 4, 878.72 kilograms along Awolowo road in Ikoyi, Lagos.

“After a near fatal encounter with some suspected fake security agents escorting the drugs, the NDLEA operatives succeeded in recovering the consignment with a white truck marked BDG 548 XX conveying it.

“This was followed by the seizure of 121,630 pills of pharmaceutical opioids and some quantity of Molly from a dealer, Charles Okeke on Wednesday 11th January at Idumota area of Lagos Island.

“Another effort by the Agency to bring the drug cartels to their kneels paid off on Friday 13th Jan when operatives tracked and located a major warehouse for pharmaceutical opioids at 17 Sir Ben Onyeka street, off Ago palace way in Amuwo Odofin area of the state while the owner of the store, Aloysius Okeke was arrested.

“Illicit drugs recovered from the warehouse include: Three Million Two Hundred and Sixty Four Thousand Six Hundred and Thirty (3,264,630) pills of tramadol; Three Thousand Four Hundred and Ninety (3,490) bottles of codeine and Nine Hundred and Fifteen Thousand (915,000) capsules of pregabalin 300mg,” Babafemi disclosed.

He said the massive breakthrough came on the heels of the arrest of a suspect, Olarenwaju Lawal Wahab who distributed for the cartel same day.

“Recovered from his white Mercedes distribution bus include: 14,690 bottles of codeine-based syrup; 402, 500 tablets of Tramadol 250mg; 50,000 tablets of Tramadol 225mg and 210,000 capsules of pregabalin 300mg.

In neighbouring Ogun state, operatives in the early hours of Saturday 14th Jan. also discovered and dismantled a clandestine laboratory on the outskirts of Sagamu from where skuchies, a highly potent psychoactive substance made with a blend of Cannabis Sativa, Tramadol, Rohypnol, Exol-5 and industrial codeine, was being produced in large quantity, packaged and distributed in jerry cans and bottles.

”All the equipment for the production including power generators, industrial gas cylinders, drums and kegs as well as various quantities of illicit drugs such as 214kgs cannabis; 1,440 capsules of tramadol; 480 tablets of swinol; 1,440 tablets of Rohypnol and 114 liters of industrial codeine, among others were recovered from the building before sealing off the premises,” he said.

In Abuja, Babafemi disclosed that operatives of the FCT Command of the Agency on Thursday 12th Jan. raided the notorious Tora bora hills in the federal capital city and recovered 350.7kgs of skunk and 794 bottles of codeine hidden under rocks.

“This is even as 756kgs of C/S were recovered at Dawo village, Kaga LGA, Borno and transferred to the Agency on Friday 13th Jan. by officers of the Nigerian Army, FOB 29 Task Force Brigade, Benishiekh, in conjunction with Hunters group, based on intelligence from the State Command of NDLEA.

“In Ondo state, operatives stormed Alayere, Akure North LGA, where they arrested a suspect, Sunday Make with 275kgs of Cannabis Sativa and Seeds, while a total of 272kgs of C/S were recovered from two suspects: Nwele Friday, 35, and Egbe Nnaemeka, 47 at Ifo layout, Abakpa Nike, Enugu. In Katsina, 34.3kgs of cannabis were also recovered from an uncompleted building in Muduru, Mani village after which the owner, Murtala Isiya was arrested in a follow up operation.