The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intercepted consignments of Loud, a potent strain of cannabis, and codeine-based cough syrup worth over N5 billion at the Apapa, Tincan Island and Onne seaports.
NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, said the seizures followed months of intelligence gathering and tracking of the shipments from their ports of origin.
At Apapa Port, officers working with the Nigeria Customs Service and other agencies recovered 161 parcels of Thai Loud weighing 124kg from two containers shipped from Bangkok, Thailand. The drugs, concealed in refrigerators and cartons, were valued at N372 million.
At Onne Port in Rivers, officers recovered 40 packs of Loud weighing 22kg from one of two watch-listed containers. Another container contained 109,600 bottles of codeine-based cough syrup weighing 16,440kg. The combined street value of the consignments was put at N833.2 million.
At Tincan Island Port, Lagos, NDLEA officers and other agencies recovered 2,595 parcels of Canadian Loud weighing 1,297.5kg from a container shipped from Montreal, Canada. The drugs, concealed in vehicles and other items, were valued at over N3.8 billion.
NDLEA Chairman, retired Brig.-Gen. Buba Marwa, commended the officers for their intelligence-driven operations and urged them to sustain efforts against drug trafficking networks.
