The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested three persons living with disabilities for alleged involvement in drug trafficking, while uncovering a massive cannabis haul valued at over N5.8 billion in Lagos.

The anti-narcotics agency said the arrests and seizures were made during coordinated operations across Lagos, Anambra, Kwara, Nasarawa and Kogi states as part of an intensified nationwide crackdown on illicit drug trafficking and abuse.

NDLEA spokesman, Femi Babafemi, disclosed on Sunday that a 60-year-old suspect, Romanus Nwabara, was arrested during an intelligence-led operation in Akpaka Forest, Onitsha, Anambra State.

According to the agency, operatives recovered 250 grammes of skunk packaged in retail sachets from the suspect.

In another operation in Ogbunike, also in Anambra State, NDLEA officers arrested 25-year-old Amos Kenneth with assorted illicit substances, including 160.3 grammes of Tramadol pills, 80 tablets of Diazepam, 38.23 grammes of Exol-5 and 176.93 grammes of skunk.

The agency further disclosed that operatives on patrol along Bode Saadu in Kwara State intercepted a commercial vehicle and arrested a passenger, Usman Salisu, allegedly in possession of 6.3 kilogrammes of skunk concealed inside a school bag.

In what officials described as one of the agency’s biggest seizures in recent months, NDLEA operatives raided a mansion in Lekki Phase 1, Lagos, allegedly being used as a drug stash house.

Babafemi said officers recovered 4,000 parcels of “Loud,” a potent imported strain of cannabis, weighing 2,326 kilogrammes and estimated at over N5.815 billion in street value.

The drugs were allegedly discovered at a property located on African Lane, Lekki Phase 1, during the operation carried out on Friday.

The agency also seized two Mercedes-Benz buses and designer packaging materials allegedly used for the retail distribution of narcotics.

Elsewhere, NDLEA operatives arrested Emmanuel Osita Okeke, 38, with 129 kilogrammes of skunk in Nyanya-Karu, Nasarawa State.

In Kogi State, officers on patrol along the Okene-Lokoja highway intercepted a white commuter bus travelling to Abuja and recovered 76 jumbo bags of skunk weighing 766 kilogrammes.

Three suspects — Mathew Omohove, Ebuka Desmond and Babangida Musa — were arrested in connection with the seizure.

The agency also uncovered a makeshift “skuchies” production facility in the Ijora Badia area of Lagos during a separate raid conducted on Wednesday.

Two suspects, Bose Jamiu and Gbenga Gege, were reportedly arrested while allegedly mixing cannabis with other psychoactive substances.

According to NDLEA, operatives recovered 270 litres of prepared skuchies — a dangerous cocktail of illicit substances increasingly abused by youths — as well as 106 grammes of Tramadol 225mg.

Beyond enforcement operations, the agency said it continued its nationwide War Against Drug Abuse campaign through sensitisation programmes in schools, communities and religious centres across several states, including Nasarawa, Ekiti, Enugu, Abia, Lagos, Akwa Ibom, Kano and Oyo.

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brigadier General Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended officers involved in the operations for sustaining the agency’s dual strategy of reducing drug supply while intensifying public awareness campaigns against substance abuse.

He urged commanders and operatives nationwide to sustain the momentum in the ongoing fight against illicit drugs and trafficking networks across the country.

Michael Olugbode