Nigeria’s National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has seized 8,725kg of powdered tramadol worth over ₦6.98 billion at Lagos’ Apapa port and intercepted cannabis concealed in a gallon of palm oil bound for Saudi Arabia.
The tramadol shipment, imported from India and declared as maize starch, was confirmed through laboratory tests to contain tramadol hydrochloride. At Kano airport, northern Nigeria, officers found 511.75g of cannabis in a female passenger’s luggage as she prepared to board a flight to Jeddah via Addis Ababa. Her cousin was also arrested.
In Lagos, officers seized 55kg of Canadian Loud, a cannabis strain, worth ₦165 million at Tin Can port. Other raids in the city yielded 10,600 ampoules of diazepam, 6,500 Molly tablets, 18,000 tramadol pills and more than 121kg of cannabis.
In Edo State, six suspects were arrested, including an 85-year-old woman found with 179kg of cannabis. In Ondo State, officers destroyed 7.5 tonnes of cannabis on a three-hectare farm, arrested five suspects and seized another 375kg in a separate operation.
In Bauchi, officers recovered 894,800 tramadol capsules and Exol-5 tablets from a suspect, while separate operations yielded 265kg of cannabis. Further seizures included 496.5kg of cannabis in Kaduna, 30,100 tramadol tablets and 100,000 Exol-5 tablets in Kano, and 29,500 tramadol capsules in Abuja.
NDLEA chief Mohamed Buba Marwa commended officers for the operations and urged them to sustain efforts against drug trafficking networks. The agency also continued public education campaigns on drug abuse in schools and communities.
