The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) recently announced the seizure of significant shipments of methamphetamine and “Loud,” a potent synthetic strain of cannabis, with an estimated value over billions of naira.
These illicit substances were concealed within imported automobile spare parts and were confiscated at the Tincan Seaport in Lagos.
According to the NDLEA, the successful seizure of these drugs, which were intended for distribution during the Christmas and New Year festive period, resulted from several months of intelligence-driven surveillance spanning three continents.
This information was disclosed on Sunday by Femi Babafemi, Director of Media and Advocacy at NDLEA Headquarters in Abuja. Babafemi reported that two separate consignments of methamphetamine, totaling 83.301 kilograms, were recovered on Thursday, December 12, and Friday, December 13, 2024, from different containers containing vehicles and spare parts shipped from Canada.
These consignments were destined for warehouses in the Ladipo automobile parts market located in the Mushin area of Lagos, marking a significant achievement in the NDLEA’s anti-narcotic operations.
During the inspection of the first container, which was under NDLEA surveillance since October 4, 2024, 5.001 kilograms of methamphetamine were discovered concealed in a bag wrapped in a bedsheet within a Toyota Camry. A businessman named Isaac Onwumere, associated with this consignment was arrested promptly.
In the second container, inspected on December 13, 2024, authorities discovered 1,735 parcels of "Loud" packed into 44 jumbo bags, weighing a total of 867.5 kilograms, along with six plastic coolers containing 87 packs of methamphetamine with a cumulative weight of 78.3 kilograms. Two businessmen, Nwanolue Emeka, and Friday Ogbe, were apprehended in connection with this seizure.
The total value of the two methamphetamine consignments, amounting to 83.301 kilograms, is estimated at ₦124,951,000, while the 867.5 kilograms of "Loud" holds a street value of ₦2,168,750,000.
These seizures were conducted during a collaborative examination of the shipments by NDLEA operatives, Customs officers, and other pertinent port stakeholders, following extensive intelligence processing and tracking from the point of origin in Canada to their arrival at the Lagos port.
The first consignment of 5.001 kilograms of methamphetamine was monitored beginning October 4, 2024, during its shipment preparations in Toronto, Canada, and was tracked throughout its journey, including loading onto a vessel on October 19, arrival and discharge at Antwerp, Belgium, on October 30, and its transshipment to Lagos, where it arrived on December 1 and was moved to a bonded terminal on December 3.
Similarly, the second shipment, containing 867.5 kilograms of "Loud" and 78.3 kilograms of methamphetamine, was initially flagged on October 8, 2024, in Toronto, Canada, and subsequently monitored through Montreal, Europe, and Lagos, arriving at the port on December 6 before being transferred to a terminal on December 10.
In addition to these operations, the NDLEA reported the interception of 636,600 bottles of codeine-based syrup, valued at ₦4,456,200,000 in street value. These shipments, originating from India, were confiscated on December 9, December 11, and December 13, 2024, at the Port Harcourt Port Complex in Onne, Rivers State.
Babafemi noted that these actions occurred during coordinated examinations of four containers by NDLEA operatives, Customs officials, and other security agencies, based on credible intelligence.
In response to these developments, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, commended the efforts of the officers and personnel from the Special Operations Units at the Tincan and Onne Commands.
Marwa emphasized that these operational successes illustrate the Agency’s capability and intelligence network to trace drug traffickers and their consignments even before they enter Nigeria. He cautioned that drug traffickers will continue to face considerable losses if they do not cease their involvement in the illicit drug trade.
