NDLEA Detains Woman Attempting to Smuggle Cannabis to Qatar

In a joint operation with the Department of State Services, operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have apprehended a 35-year-old woman, Chidinma Chinenye-Agbazue, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos State.

She was caught trying to export 20 parcels of Cannabis Sativa weighing 10.70kg to Doha, Qatar, concealed within African salad, also known as Abacha, and dried vegetables.

According to NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi, Chidinma confessed to being based in Qatar but had returned to Nigeria for Christmas last December. She claimed the illicit drugs were handed over to her for trafficking to Qatar during her stay at Club Dice Hotel in Ikotun, Lagos.

Additionally, two other suspects, Monday Okeke and Chigozie Emeka, were arrested in separate locations in Lagos, where NDLEA operatives seized 842,560 pills of opioids, including tramadol, along with codeine syrup and Molly.

In Bayelsa, NDLEA operatives thwarted the smuggling attempt of opioids by three suspects: Ebuka Eze, Ugochukwu Okoro, and Kingsley Uzim. The drugs, including codeine, molly, tramadol, and diazepam, weighing a total of 73.425kg, were intercepted at Swali jetty, Yenagoa.

The agency also made significant seizures in Ogun, Taraba, Abia, Ondo, and Edo States, recovering large quantities of cannabis, tramadol, and other illicit substances. Numerous suspects were arrested in connection with these operations.

NDLEA spokesperson Babafemi emphasized the agency’s commitment to combating drug trafficking and related crimes, noting that attempts to bribe officers were rebuffed, and seized bribe money documented as evidence for prosecution.