The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has dismantled a drug syndicate that sponsored hajj pilgrims as cocaine couriers to Saudi Arabia.
The bust followed the arrest of two pilgrims, Ibrahim Umar Mustapha and Muhammad Siraj Shifado, at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport on May 26. Both excreted 45 wraps of cocaine each, totaling 1.04kg.
Subsequent investigations led to the arrest of three cartel leaders — Abubakar Muhammad, Abdulhakeem Muhammed Tijjani, and Muhammad Aji Shugaba — on May 27 and 28 in Kano.
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In a related case, 60-year-old businessman Chinedu Leonard Okigbo was caught at Kano Airport en route to Iran. He excreted 65 wraps of cocaine weighing 1.41kg.
Meanwhile, NDLEA operatives at the Port Harcourt Ports Complex, Onne, seized 825,200 bottles of codeine syrup and 5.1 million pills of opioids worth ₦9.3 billion during a joint container examination from May 28 to 30.
Also in Kano, two suspects were arrested along the Kano-Maiduguri road with $900,000 in suspected counterfeit currency.
In Adamawa, 275.3kg of cannabis was recovered from an abandoned vehicle. In Ilorin, NDLEA apprehended notorious dealer Alhaja Mutiat Abdul-Fatai with various opioids.
NDLEA also continued its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) campaign across schools nationwide.
Chairman/CEO Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd) commended officers for their efforts in reducing drug supply and demand.
