The Chairman/Chief Executive of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (Retd) has ordered for a stop and search of all commercial despatch riders in Abuja.
The new order followed the rising of distribution of drugs via despatch riders in the nation’s capital.
A statement on Sunday by the spokesman of the NDLEA, Femi Babafemi said the directive was given to the FCT Command of the Agency to immediately embark on stop and search of commercial despatch riders across the nation’s capital city to curb the online drug trafficking trend in the FCT.
Babafemi said the NDLEA boss, meanwhile commended the Commander of the FCT Command, Mohammed Sokoto, and his officers and men for the recent successes and for sustaining the offensive against the latest trend in illicit drug trafficking in the nation’s seat of power.
He said the NDLEA boss also commended officers and men of the Directorate of Operations and General Investigations (DOGI)for their vigilance and commitment to work.
On recent seizures and arrests, Babafemi said 10 persons were arrested in raids by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, on online drug traffickers in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.
He said during the raids a young lady and her boyfriend as well as eight others were arrested and assorted drugs recovered from them.
Babafemi said one of the suspects, 28-year-old Ese Patrick who sells her illicit substances through Instagram account; Ese’sOvenSecret, was tracked and arrested with some pieces of brownies ordered online by NDLEA’s undercover agents, on 21st May, 2021 and delivered by herself and her boyfriend in a Mercedes Benz car.
He disclosed that a follow-up operation at her residence led to the seizure of 400 grams of Arizona weed, which she uses in baking the brownies.
Babafemi said further investigation led to the arrest of one Iyama Patrick, with 450 grams of Arizona weed, abs he was identified to be the supplier of cannabis to Ese.
He said a day earlier, a motorcycle belonging to a courier company, Sky Port was abandoned by a despatch rider in Wuse zone 4 upon sighting NDLEA’s outpost in the area.
On searching, the motorcycle was found to contain several pinches of crack cocaine (a.k.a Challie), and some envelopes of Arizona meant for delivery.
Babafemi said, another online drug trafficker, Peter Nkejika was arrested on Monday 24th May 2021 following an arrest of a despatch rider with some quantity of Loud, a highly psychoactive variant of cannabis.
He said each portion of loud costs N30,000 and the rider was caught with 17 portions for delivery.
He disclosed that also on Tuesday 25th May, NDLEA operatives intercepted two online drug transactions and arrested two despatch riders with some quantities of cocaine and Loud already packaged for delivery were recovered from them.
The NDLEA spokesman said in all, five despatch riders and a woman, Dolapo Benjamin who owns motorcycles involved in door to door distribution of drugs and drug based edibles; cakes and brownies were arrested, while six despatch motorcycles involved in door to door drug distribution were seized.
He said also seized from them were assorted drugs including cocaine, crack/challie, molly/ecstasy, skunk, brownies and loud.
He said loud is the most expensive psychoactive variant of cannabis in town.
He said revealed that in a related development, on the 27th May 2021, operatives intercepted 30 compressed parcels of cannabis, heading to Ningi, Bauchi state, as well as Rohypnol and Tramadol meant for the FCT.
According to him, the drugs weighing 105.5 kilogrammes were seized along Gwagwalada- Abuja road, in a luxury bus.
He said three persons were arrested in connection with the exhibits, while two more despatch motorcycles were seized with some quantities of cocaine and cannabis on Saturday, May 29 as the raids across the FCT intensified.
In another clampdown, the operatives of the Directorate of Operations and General Investigations (DOGI) of the agency have intercepted 445 grammes of Methamphetamine going to New Zealand and concealed inside USB chargers and hair attachments, with another 450 grammes of cannabis sativa going to UAE and concealed inside local soap containers at a courier company in Lagos.
Also, 125 grammes of heroin concealed inside academic thesis books was seized at another firm while 2 kilogrammes of cannabis sativa hidden inside tractor’s balloon was intercepted at another courier company in Lagos.
