The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested two brothers attempting to smuggle cocaine to India through Lagos’s Murtala Muhammed International Airport, according to a statement released by the agency.
John Abugu, 43, and Kenneth Abugu, 31, were apprehended on Thursday while trying to board a flight to India with five kilogrammes of cocaine concealed in the walls of their suitcases. NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi said the arrests followed “proactive processing of credible intelligence.”
The brothers claimed they were travelling to India for medical treatment, but a thorough search of their luggage revealed whitish powdery substances later confirmed to be cocaine.
In a separate incident on the same day, NDLEA officers intercepted Parker Darren Hazekia Osei, a 20-year-old Ghanaian-British national, with 36 parcels of “Loud” – a potent strain of cannabis – weighing 19.40 kilogrammes. The drugs were packed in a large travelling bag.
“The suspect, who claims he is a student of Computer Science at East London University, UK, was arrested during the inward clearance of passengers on an Ethiopian Airlines flight from Bangkok, Thailand,” Babafemi stated. Osei reportedly told investigators he had travelled to Bangkok about a week earlier to collect the drugs for delivery in Nigeria.
The NDLEA also reported several other drug-related arrests across the country. In Abia State, officers arrested 75-year-old Nna Nnanna Felix with 1.6 kilogrammes of skunk cannabis during a Saturday raid in Umunteke Asa, Ukwa West Local Government Area.
Another suspect, 21-year-old David Chinemerem, was apprehended with 2,050 ampoules of pentazocine in Aba on Tuesday.
In Kogi State, 33-year-old Ngozi Ogili was arrested on Monday while transporting three kilogrammes of methamphetamine from Lagos to Abuja. She was intercepted on the Okene-Lokoja highway while travelling in a commercial vehicle. A follow-up operation at her delivery point in Abuja’s Apo Mechanic area led to the seizure of additional quantities of “Loud” and “Colorado,” both synthetic cannabis strains.
The NDLEA continues its intensified operations against drug trafficking across Nigeria’s transportation networks and borders.
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