NDLEA nabs two drug kingpins with 125 wraps of heroin, seizes colorado, loud

Efforts by two major drug traffickers to smuggle heroin into Nigeria through Port Harcourt International Airport and Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) have been thwarted by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).

NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday.

One of the suspects, Onyekwonike Elochuckwu Sylvanus, 30, was arrested while attempting to enter Nigeria using a Sierra Leonean passport under the alias Kargbo Mohamed Foday. Sylvanus, who operates under dual identities for cross-border drug trafficking, was intercepted on Sunday, February 2, 2025, at the Port Harcourt airport upon arrival on a Qatar Airways flight from Doha via Abuja.

A body scan revealed he had ingested illicit substances. Placed under excretion observation, he later expelled 62 wraps of heroin, totaling 1.348 kilograms, over five separate excretions.

Investigations uncovered that Sylvanus alternates between his Nigerian and Sierra Leonean identities to traffic heroin across Thailand, Pakistan, Iran, and West Africa. He confessed to joining the drug trade full-time in 2017 after his clothing and shoe business failed.

Second Drug Kingpin Arrested at Lagos Airport

Another trafficker, James Herbert Chinoso, 48, was arrested at MMIA on Saturday, February 1, 2025, after arriving from Madagascar via Addis Ababa on an Ethiopian Airlines flight. A body scan confirmed he had ingested illicit drugs, leading to his placement under excretion observation. He later expelled 63 wraps of heroin weighing 909 grams.

Chinoso had traveled from Lagos to Madagascar on January 26, 2025, and returned after a week. He admitted to smuggling drugs after his phone accessories business in Liberia collapsed.

Major Drug Seizures Across the Country

In addition to the arrests, NDLEA operatives intercepted several drug consignments:

• At a Lagos courier firm, two parcels containing 2.82 kilograms of Loud (a synthetic cannabis strain) imported from the United States were seized.
• Another shipment containing 80 ampoules of pentazocine injection (225 grams) was intercepted at a separate logistics company in Lagos, destined for Canada.
• In Kano, officers arrested Usaini Salisu and Yahaya Mu’azu, both 23 years old, on Monday, February 3, 2025, along Gadar Tamburawa, Zaria Road, while they attempted to transport 15,396 tramadol pills concealed inside a gas cylinder.
• On the same day, Choima Okeke, 35, was arrested in Sabon Gari with 27 blocks of skunk (15kg).
• In Kogi State, NDLEA operatives intercepted 12,800 tramadol pills (250mg) on Saturday, February 8, 2025, along the Kabba-Obajana highway, leading to the arrest of Salisu Basiru, 33.
• At the same checkpoint, 65 parcels of Colorado (a potent synthetic cannabis strain) weighing 1.6kg, bound for Jigawa State, were seized from Rufai Hassan, 32.

Nationwide Anti-Drug Campaigns Intensify

Alongside enforcement operations, NDLEA continues to expand its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) campaign by conducting sensitization programs in schools, workplaces, religious centers, and communities. Recent awareness sessions were held at:

• Saint Secondary School, Abakaliki, Ebonyi
• Taangayar Malam Abubakar Bichi (Almajiri school), Bichi, Kano
• Federal Government Girls College, Calabar, Cross River
• College of Nursing and Science, Birnin Kebbi
• Meiran Community Junior Secondary School, Abule Egba, Lagos

NDLEA Chairman, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended the MMIA, PHIA, DOGI, Kano, and Kogi Commands for their relentless efforts in disrupting drug supply chains while simultaneously promoting demand reduction initiatives nationwide.

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