NDLEA arrests 74-year-old man with 11kg cocaine at Abuja airport

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a 74-year-old man at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja for allegedly attempting to smuggle 11 kilograms of cocaine concealed in food items while travelling to the United Kingdom.

The suspect, Ikwuakalom Nwakoro Emeka, was apprehended at the airport’s departure hall on Saturday while trying to board a British Airways flight to London.

According to a statement issued on Sunday by the NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, operatives discovered the drugs hidden inside the suspect’s luggage during a routine search.

Babafemi said the cocaine was wrapped in foil papers and balloons and concealed in food items, including ground dry pepper.

“A 74-year-old grandpa, Ikwuakalom Nwakoro Emeka, has been arrested by NDLEA operatives at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport after a large consignment of cocaine was discovered concealed in his luggage,” the statement said.

“During a search of his luggage, blocks of cocaine weighing 11 kilograms were discovered hidden inside food items, including ground dry pepper.”

NDLEA records other drug arrests across Nigeria

The agency also disclosed that several other arrests and drug seizures were made in different parts of the country during the week.

In Lagos, NDLEA operatives arrested a woman, Maryam Olalowo, at a hotel in Victoria Island while she was allegedly attempting to sell 89 grams of cocaine and 20 grams of Canadian Loud, a strain of cannabis.

Babafemi said the suspect was with her three children, including an infant, when she was arrested.

The agency later arrested her husband, Ibrahim Olalowo Olatunji, after investigations revealed that the drugs belonged to him.

According to the NDLEA, the suspect admitted ownership of the drugs, and investigators later discovered that he had previously been arrested and convicted for a similar offence in 2015.

Large tramadol and cannabis seizures

In another operation on Lagos Island, NDLEA officers arrested Kalilou Simpara and Saidu Ibrahim after recovering 68,000 tramadol pills from a truck allegedly transporting the drugs to Benin.

A follow-up raid at Idumota Market led to the arrest of Nnamdi Cyprian, suspected to be the owner of the consignment, while officers also recovered 1,000 tramadol tablets prepared for delivery from his shop.

In a separate raid at the same market, another suspect, Nwanosike Kelvin, was arrested with 47,500 ampoules of pentazocine injection.

Elsewhere, NDLEA operatives arrested Magaji Dan Azumi, 42, with 386 kilograms of skunk in Bebeji, and Isah Wako, who was found with 282.2 kilograms of the same substance in Gwagwalada.

Meanwhile, in Orhionmwon Local Government Area of Edo State, operatives raided the Egwa Forest Reserve, arresting Chinedo Odalonu and destroying more than 4,218 kilograms of skunk cultivated on two farms.

At Apapa Seaport, NDLEA officers working with customs officials also intercepted 339,800 bottles of codeine-based syrup concealed in two containers flagged through intelligence reports.

The NDLEA chairman and chief executive officer, Buba Marwa, commended officers involved in the operations across Abuja, Lagos, Kano, and Edo states.

Marwa urged the operatives to sustain the ongoing crackdown aimed at reducing the supply and demand of illicit drugs across Nigeria.

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