Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency have arrested a serving officer of an unidentified law enforcement agency, Abayomi Popoola, for allegedly selling assorted illicit drugs to students of a federal university and suspected cultists in Ogun State.
Popoola, who serves at the Lagos command of the security agency, was arrested on Wednesday after a surveillance on his wife’s shop at the Camp area of Abeokuta by the NDLEA operatives.
It was gathered that one of his salesmen, identified simply as Ogah, was trailed to the shop around 8pm and arrested with six pinches of Colorado weighing 1.17grams before Popoola, who had been on the agency’s watch list, was apprehended with different illicit drugs, including 17 bottles of codeine, 22.26 grams of cannabis, 230 tablets of tramadol weighing 98grams; 61 tablets of flunitrazepam weighing 23.72 grams; 113 tablets of molly weighing 48.16grams; and 43.92 grams of sex drops.
A statement on Sunday by the Director of Media and Advocacy, NDLEA, Femi Babafemi, said after the arrest of the two suspects, some student union officials of the institution blocked the agency’s team with their official vehicle, but after hours of stand-off, the operatives succeeded in moving the suspects to its facility.
A passenger on a Turkish Airline flight from Pakistan, Ezenyeche Ebuka, was also arrested at the ‘D’ arrival hall of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, with five pellets of heroin weighing 250 grams in his anus.
Ebuka was arrested on Monday, June 14, 2021, by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency during an inward clearance of passengers on the flight.
Similarly, one Adelodun Kamaldeen was arrested on Sunday, June 13, 2021, by operatives of the Oyo State Command of the agency at the General area of Ilorin, Kwara State, following the interception of a parcel containing cocaine and heroin weighing 10.5 grams and 4.8 grams, respectively.
According to the statement, two women, Mary Peter, 40, and Mercy Oladele, 39, were arrested at the Total Garden, Ibadan, Oyo State, when operatives of the agency, who were acting on a tip-off, intercepted their commercial Micra car.
The two women, who were arrested with seven bags of cannabis Sativa weighing 77.23kg brought in from Ogbese, Ondo State, to supply a man they identified simply as Alhaji, said they had earlier supplied the same person with two bags of the substance before coming with the seven bags they were caught with.
Operatives of the Oyo State Command of the agency also raided the residence of one Alhaji Faruq at the Elebu area of Akala Expressway, Ibadan, on Friday, where they recovered 43 ampoules of methylphenidate.
Also, a suspected drug trafficker, Segun Abraham, was arrested at the Panteka area of Kaduna State on Thursday with 211.5kg of skunk heading for Kano State.
The Chairman/Chief Executive, NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (retd.), while warning that the agency would not spare any law enforcement agent hiding under the privilege of his uniform to engage in criminal narcotic business, commended the MMIA, Ogun, Oyo and Kaduna state commands of the agency for the feats.
“Those who think they can sabotage ongoing efforts to rid Nigeria of the menace of illicit drug trafficking and abuse by hiding behind the façade of their uniforms should better think twice, because they’ll have the NDLEA to contend with. We’ll not only arrest and expose them, but we’ll equally prosecute them and seize all assets acquired through the proceeds of their criminal activities,” he added.
