By HeapNews
A 59-year-old businessman, Ezeokoli Sylva, returning from Brazil, was arrested by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) on Friday, November 29, 2024. Sylva was found to have swallowed 700 grams of cocaine, concealed in 29 wraps, during a body scan and subsequent observation.
In his statement, Sylva revealed that he had purchased the cocaine in Sao Paulo, Brazil, intending to sell it in Nigeria to raise capital for his African store business. “I run a store in Brazil, selling provisions, shoes, and clothes. I was desperate to grow my business, and I made a terrible mistake,” Sylva admitted.
Meanwhile, NDLEA operatives at Lagos intercepted additional consignments of cocaine (200 grams) and pentazocine injection (110 grams) destined for the UK. The drugs were concealed in local fabrics and cartons and discovered on November 26 at a courier company.
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In Kano, three suspects were arrested with 2,000 ampoules of pentazocine injection and over three million pills of Exol-5 on November 28 at Zaria Road. Similarly, in Lagos, officers seized 2,120 kilograms of Ghanaian Loud cannabis at Ilesan Beach and 472 kilograms of the same substance in Ogun State.
Edo State operations also yielded the arrest of two suspects, Monday Onyenemue, 60, and Evans Omogiede, 42, with 185.6 kilograms of cannabis and a vehicle conveying the contraband.
NDLEA Chairman, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended the agency’s officers for their dedication. “Our balanced approach to tackling drug supply and demand reduction is yielding results. These arrests and seizures demonstrate our resolve to dismantle drug networks,” he stated.
In addition to operations, the agency conducted War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitization programs in schools, markets, and communities across the country, emphasizing the dangers of drug abuse and trafficking.