The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 41-year-old Canadian woman for importing illegal drugs into Nigeria.
Identified as Adrienne Munju, she was apprehended by NDLEA operatives at Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Ikeja, Lagos, for smuggling a large quantity of ‘Canadian Loud,’ a potent strain of synthetic cannabis. This incident highlights the ongoing challenges faced by authorities in combating drug trafficking in the country.
According to a statement by NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi, the arrest took place on Thursday, October 3, 2024, during the inward clearance of passengers on a KLM flight from Canada at Terminal 1 of the Lagos airport. The agency continues to enhance its vigilance and screening processes at entry points to ensure the safety and security of the public.
During a joint examination of her three bags, Adrienne, who was coming to Nigeria for the first time, was found with 74 parcels of the illicit substance weighing 35.20 kilograms stuffed in two of her three bags. The thorough inspection process employed by NDLEA officials played a crucial role in detecting the concealed drugs and preventing their distribution within the country.
In her statement, she claimed she was recruited to traffic the consignment through an online platform for 10,000 Canadian dollars upon successful delivery in Lagos. She said she took the offer because she needed the money to pay for her ongoing master’s degree programme in Canada, revealing the lengths to which individuals may go to secure financial assistance for education.
In the same vein, NDLEA operatives at the Port Harcourt Ports, Onne, Rivers state have intercepted Thirteen Million Two Hundred and Ninety Eight Thousand (13,298,000) pills of opioids including Tramadol, Tramaking Quick Action Tramadol, Tamol-X, Royal Tapentadol, and Carisoprodol as well as Three Hundred and Thirty Eight Thousand Two Hundred and Fifty Three (338,253) bottles of codeine-based cough syrup, all worth over Nine Billion Seventeen Million Seven Hundred and Seventy One Thousand Naira (N9,017,771,000) in street value. This large-scale seizure underscores the ongoing opioid crisis and the efforts by the NDLEA to combat drug abuse and trafficking in Nigeria.
The opioids were recovered in three containers coming from India, targeted by the NDLEA during a 100% joint examination of the cargoes with men of the Nigerian Customs and other port stakeholders on Wednesday 2nd and Thursday 3rd October 2024. This collaborative approach is essential for effectively addressing the challenges posed by drug trafficking networks that exploit various routes to introduce harmful substances into the country.
Similarly, NDLEA operatives at the Tincan seaport in Lagos on Thursday 3rd October intercepted 100 parcels of Canadian Loud weighing 50kg. The consignment was packed in 20 parcels each in five jumbo bags concealed in a container with four units of imported vehicles that came from Canada. The agency's intelligence gathering and operational strategies have proven effective in identifying and seizing illegal drug shipments, further contributing to public safety.
Though the container had earlier been cleared out of the ESS Libra Bonded Terminal in Ikorodu, based on credible intelligence, NDLEA operatives were able to trace it to a warehouse in Ikorodu where the illicit consignments were discovered in one of the imported vehicles, a Toyota Sienna bus. A suspect, Abubakar Shuaibu Ibrahim, has already been taken into custody in connection with the seizure, indicating that authorities are not only focused on intercepting drugs but also on apprehending individuals involved in trafficking activities.
In Taraba, NDLEA officers on Thursday 3rd October intercepted a commercial bus marked JAL 198 YQ coming from Onitsha, Anambra state, to Jalingo. Large quantities of opioids, including tramadol, rohypnol, and codeine-based syrup concealed in body compartments of the vehicle were recovered when it was searched, while two suspects, Pako Thomas and Emmanuel Anyigor, were arrested. Another suspect, Chibuzor Okafor, was arrested at Wukari on Wednesday 2nd October with 80 blocks of cannabis weighing 38kg hidden in bags of garri, demonstrating the diverse methods employed by traffickers to evade detection.
In Lagos, a suspect, Bolanle Ajenifuja, was on Friday 4th October arrested at Afo – Media area of Ojo, where 700 litres of skuchies, a mixture of local chapman and a cocktail of illicit drugs were recovered from her. Meanwhile, three suspects—Ezekiel Akpele, Elijah Michael, and Goddard John—were nabbed the same day when NDLEA operatives raided two cannabis farms located at Bridge Camp, a boundary community between Edo and Ondo states. Not less than 9,966.332kg of the substance was destroyed on over three hectares of farmland, with 48kg of the already processed psychoactive substance recovered. These actions are part of the NDLEA's broader strategy to dismantle drug production and distribution networks across the country.