The Nation Newspaper

Tag: National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency

  • Hoodlums kill four NDLEA officers, burn patrol vehicles

    Hoodlums suspected to be drug peddlers on Sunday night reportedly killed four officers of the Ondo State command of the National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in Ifon, headquarters of Ose Local Government Area of the state.

    Sources said the hoodlums also burnt the official vehicle of the Agency used for patrol in the area.

    It was learnt that the suspected drug peddlers who were three in number carried AK47 rifles and other dangerous weapons when they attacked the NDLEA officers who were on patrol.

    They were said to have emerged on a motorcycle and shot the four NDLEA officers on the chest, but one of the officers narrowly escaped into the bush.

    The NDLEA officers were met unawares at their checkpoint along lkaro, Sabo road. All efforts to escape death failed.

    Five of the NDLEA officers on patrol were said to have been on patrol before the killers emerged.

    All their rifles and personal belongings were carted away by the hoodlums.

    The dead NDLEA officers are Abduljalad Mohammed, Wellinton Emmanuel, Magaji Aliu and Mohammed lliyasu.

    The State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) Femi Joseph, a Superintendent of Police(SP) who confirmed the incident, said the Police would collaborate with the NDLEA to bring the culprits to book.

    According to him, the state police command was investigating the incident, with a view to bringing the culprits to book.

    He assured that those who perpetrated the devilish act would be apprehended and prosecuted.

    Joseph said the NDLEA and the Police would work together to ensure that justice was done on the matter soonest.

  • NDLEA arrest 23 suspected hard drug pushers

    THE Commandant, Kano State Command of the National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Alhaji Ibrahim Abdul on Tuesday said that 23 suspected Cocaine pushers were arrested in the state within the last one month.

    The Commandant stated this while briefing Newsmen on his achievement as the new NDLEA boss in the state.

    Abdul, who resume as the commandant in December 2018 said 20 of the suspects who were arrested in Sabon Gari are not Kano indigens, but from the southern part of the country.

    Abdul maintained that the arrest of the suspected Cocaine pushers was part of the command’s efforts towards ending the drug abuse in Kano.

    According to him, the suspects, Ikenna Daniel was arrested with over eight cartons of fake Augmentin weighing 115 kilograms and Articimet of about 136 kilograms.

    Read Also: Buhari calls for respect for democracy in Gabon

    Abdul noted that 86 suspects were arrested by the command within the last one month, with different types of illicit drugs weighing 1.4 tons.

    He explained that the command is making all necessary arrangements to arraign all the suspects to court.

    The commandant explained that NDLEA had also intercepted 17.1 grams of Cocaine, Cannabis 761.5 kilograms, Heroin 20 grams, tramadol 182.3 kilograms, Codeine 75.2 kilograms while 12.5kilograms of D5 was as well impounded.

    He added that the command had also intercepted 10.4 kilograms of Pentazocine and also 314 grams, adding that, they have as well confiscated the total of 1,042.516 kilograms which is over one ton of the illicit drugs.

  • Customs seizes N21b Tramadol, hemp in Sokoto

    Some 68 cartons of Tramadol and 120kg of cannabis valued at N21.1 million have been intercepted by the Sokoto Area Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS).

    The command said it also seized six cartons of expired cigarettes.

    Handing over the seized items to the National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency  (NDLEA) and the National Food and Drugs Administration Commission (NAFDAC) at the Area Command, the Area Comptroller Nasiru Ahmed said the Tramadol worth N20 million was abandoned in a house in the Sokoto metropolis.

    The cannabis worth N1.1 million, he said, was intercepted at Kamba border concealed in bales of second-hand clothing.

    Ahmed said that the Indian helm was highly concentrated and was brought into the country from Benin Republic.

    He reiterated his call on border communities to always see smuggling as dangerous to their societies and the nation at large not a business.

    He stressed the need for stronger synergy between security agencies to curtail the menace.

    “Nigeria is our country and we need to double our effort to stop illicit drugs and firearms into our country,” he said

    He added that investigation is ongoing to unravel the owners of the seized items, just as he advised the state government to demolish the house where the tramadol was found.

    On their separate remarks, the State Coordinator of NAFDAC and the representative of NDLEA, Hamisu Yahya and Mustapha Ali-Baba appreciated the gestures which they said had shown the synergy between the command and other sister agencies as this was not the first seizure it handed over to them.

  • NDLEA arrests 25, seizes 122kg of banned drugs

    The National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency ( NDLEA ) has arrested 25 suspects and seized 122.78kg of banned drugs in Gombe since January.

    The state Commandant of the NDLEA, Mr Aliyu Adole, made the disclosure in an interview with the News men in Gombe on Monday.

    He said that the agency convicted 20 of the suspects and sentenced them to various prison terms, while five were still in custody.

    “Within this period, we removed 122.78kg drugs from circulation.

    “In March alone, we recovered 92.39kg compared with February when we had 543g,” he said.

    Read Also: NDLEA harps on the dangers of drug abuse

    Adole called on all stakeholders to join in the fight against drug abuse.

    He also called on parents and guardians to advise their children and wards to desist from forming gangs and joining thugs which, he said, encouraged drug abuse.

    “I am advising you to talk to your children. If you do not talk to them, somebody outside the family will talk to them and it will be dangerous.

    “Politicians have their children in high institutions of learning; if you allow your children to follow bad politicians, you will be the losers,” he said.

    NAN

  • Katsina NDLEA arrests trailer loaded with codeine cough syrups

    The National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency ( NDLEA ) has arrested a trailer loaded with 24,000 bottles of cough syrups containing codeine in Funtua local government area of Katsina State.

    The NDLEA State Commandant, Hajiya Maryam Gambo Sani disclosed this during a press briefing to newsmen on Tuesday in Katsina.

    She said that six persons were arrested in connection with the drug cargo. According to her, those arrested were the driver of the vehicle, his assistant and two conductors.

    Sani said other people arrested were the manager of SUNGLOW EQUITY NIG LTD who is suspected to be owner of the drugs and the salesman of the company.

    State governments north of Nigeria are generally suspicious of cough syrups containing codeine, as people buy abuse the codeine content, a kind of opiate like cocaine or heroin. Users get high on it, leading to many cases of drug addiction.

    According to reports, many users actually buy it when they cannot afford more expensive drugs such as heroin ( diamorphine ) or other opiate/opioid drugs.

    As an opiate, codeine is also used to treat pain and diarrhea. Internationally, codeine is not a banned drug.

    The Katsina state government is yet to make a law banning the use of the drug and it is unclear under which law the NDLEA will prosecute the suspects.

    The trailer was arrested by the NDLEA operatives at the company’s warehouse located in Dutsen-reme area.

    Read Also: NDLEA uncovers drug warehouses in Edo

    Sani said that the trailer came from Onitsha.

    She said that the suspects would be charged to court for prosecution.

    Sani also said that 12 students of tertiary institutions in the state were arrested for drugs related offences.

    The commandant said that the items seized from the students included 159 bottles of cough syrups with codeine, 160.6 grams of cannabis sativa and 50.7 grams of Rohypnol ( Roche ).

    She also said that a total of 186 persons were apprehended between January and March, 2018, for drugs related offences in the state.

    Sani said that 57.8 kilograms of assorted hard drugs and 25,254 bottles of cough syrups with codeine were seized from the suspects.

    She added that 8.4489 kilograms of psychotropic substances were seized from the suspects during the period under review.

    Sani urged the public to continue to assist the command in its efforts of fight against drug abuse and trafficking.

    NAN

  • NDLEA impounds 722.469kg of illicit drugs in Cross River

    NDLEA impounds 722.469kg of illicit drugs in Cross River

    The Cross River Command of National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) says it seized 722.46699 kilogrammes of hard drugs from suspected drug barons in the state in 2017.

    The command’s Public Relations Officer, Mr Kenneth Odili, said in a statement on Monday in Calabar that the seized drug worth millions of naira.

    According to him, the illicit drugs comprise 711.9721 kilogrammes of cannabis sativa (India Hemp), 395.9 grammes of cocaine, 122.6 grammes of heroin and 10.051 kilogrammes of psychotropic substances.

    Odili said that 250 suspects, made up of 230 male and 20 female, were apprehended in connection with the seizures.

    Read Also:  NDLEA  nabs two with 1,996 kg of Indian hemp

    “Also, 34 suspects were convicted at the Federal High Court in Calabar within the period under review,’’ he said.

    The NDLEA spokesman said that 161 drug dependent persons were counselled and reintegrated into the society by the agency’s Drug Demand Reduction Unit (DDRU).

    “While four tonnes of concluded cases of hard drugs were publicly burnt following orders from the court,’’ he said.

    The command appealed for assistance from the state government and relevant stakeholders in the fight against illicit drugs trafficking and drug abuse in the state.

    NAN

  • NDLEA secures conviction of 10 drug dealers

    NDLEA secures conviction of 10 drug dealers

    The National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency ( NDLEA ), Cross River Command, said on Monday that it secured the conviction of 10 drug dealers in the state between October and November.

    The agency’s Public Relations Officer in the state, Mr Kenneth Odili, made the disclosure in a statement made available to journalists in Calabar.

    Odili said that the convicts were handed down various jail terms by the Federal High Court in Calabar.

    According to him, one of the dealers convicted was Mr Chinedu Ogbuegbe who bagged three years imprisonment for unlawful possession of cannabis sativa (Indian) hemp.

    He said the convict spiced meat-pie and dough-nut with the substance and then sold to the public.

    “NDLEA also arrested Mr David James for being in possession of cocaine and heroin and he was sentenced to four years imprisonment.

    Read also: NDLEA arrests 119 drug traffickers

    “Other convicts and their jail terms were: Oliver Ival, one year; Aniekan Sunday, three years; Ernest Neji, two years; Edem Ene, two years; and Morris Udo, 18 months.

    “Also, one Yahaya Bello was sentenced to three years while Mr Sunday Ugah got one year and six months imprisonment,”  he said.

    The command assured the people of the agency’s commitment to riding the state of illicit drugs and advised prospective drug dealers to turn a new leaf.

    NAN

  • NDLEA arrests 119 drug traffickers in Katsina

    NDLEA arrests 119 drug traffickers in Katsina

    The National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency ( NDLEA ) in Katsina State, said on Wednesday that it had arrested 119 suspects for drug related offences between Sept. 15 and Nov. 14.

    Hajiya Maryam Sani, the NDLEA Commander in the state, who made this disclosure while briefing newsmen in Katsina, said the suspects included 104 males, four females and 11 students of higher institutions in the state.

    Read: Court remands man caught with Indian hemp

    She said the command seized 53.5kg of cannabis sativa and 48.1gm of psychotropic substances that included diazepam, exol and tramadol.

    “We also seized 49.7 litres of cough syrups with codeine, which translate to 497 bottles,’’ she said.

    The commander disclosed that the total seizures stood at 101 kg of the illegal substances.

    She said that the command was counselling 90 suspects on drug addiction in its counselling and rehabilitation centre.

    ‘’The NDLEA will continue to do its best in the fight against drug abuse and peddling in Katsina State,’’ she said.

    Sani called on traditional and religious leaders to continue to assist the agency in the ongoing fight against drug abuse in the state.

    NAN

  • NDLEA arrests drug traffickers in police uniform

    NDLEA arrests drug traffickers in police uniform

    The National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested two suspected drug traffickers who posed as police officers in Nasarawa area of Kano metropolis.

    Kano State Commandant of NDLEA, Alhaji Hamza Umar, told newsmen in Kano on Tuesday that the suspects were arrested in a brand new escort vehicle with police colour, siren, and pilot plate number and in possession of two police caps.

    According to him, the suspects were arrested blaring the siren and pretending to be police officers while conveying 715 kilograms of Indian hemp to Yobe.

    Umar said “during investigation by our officers, we discovered that the suspects were from Edo State, while their destination was Gashua, in Yobe State.

    “The two suspects who were arrested along with 715 kilograms of Indian hemp disclosed to us that they normally convey such exhibits once a month”.

    The commandant added that “if those people had succeeded in their mission to their destination, Yobe State, where the issue of insecurity is a major concern, only God knows what would have happened”.

    One of the suspects told newsmen that he was offered N200, 000 to convey the Indian hemp to Gashua.

    Meanwhile, the command has also arrested a lorry with Ebonyi State Government plate number on its way to Libya through Kano, loaded with 64 kilograms of Indian hemp hidden in fish packs.

    The commandant said the lorry was apprehended along with the driver and three other persons.

    “We are still investigating the suspects and i assure you we are getting more information from them that will assist us in getting the real owner of the exhibit.

    “At the end of our investigation, the suspects would be taken to the Federal High Court to face the law,” Umar said.

    The NDLEA boss added that in April alone, the command had intercepted over four tons of different illicit drugs and arrested 42 suspects, out of which seven had been convicted.