The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested two siblings, Kelechi Nwaobasi and Chinwe Nwaobasi, and seized consignments of cocaine and methamphetamine valued at over N4.1 billion. The arrests were made during a special investigation conducted on June 13 and 14, 2023, following months of intelligence gathering.

The NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, stated that the siblings, who led a drug cartel, were apprehended at their hideout in Aba, Abia State. A total of 20.76 kilograms of cocaine and methamphetamine were recovered from the operation.

“A cartel controlled by drug baron, 49-year-old Kelechi Monday Nwaobasi, and his 50-year-old elder sister, Ms. Chinwe Rose Nwaobasi, has been dismantled by the Special Operation Unit of the NDLEA. The siblings were arrested, and consignments worth over N4.1bn in street value were seized from their hideout in Aba, Abia State commercial city,” Babafemi disclosed in a statement on Sunday.

The operation at 3B Boundary Avenue, Aba, and a residence along Ohia Road, Ohia, Abia State, led to the significant drug bust, highlighting the agency’s commitment to combating drug trafficking.

In a related development in Lagos, NDLEA operatives uncovered a large warehouse filled with codeine-based syrup in the Comfort Oboh area of Kirikiri. Four suspects involved in the importation and distribution of the opioid were arrested. The suspects, identified as Kingsley Amanambu Obumneke, 38; Emeka Emmanuel, 48; Bonaventure Ugochukwu, 59; and Martin Dike, 56, were found with 82,000 bottles of codeine worth more than N600 million, a Toyota Tacuma truck, and two buses used for distribution.

Additionally, on June 12, NDLEA operatives in Lagos intercepted Ibrahim Abdulhamid with 29,100 pills of tramadol and 3.9 liters of codeine syrup in the Alaba Suru area of Ojo Local Council Development Area.

In Kano, on June 10, the agency arrested Yasir Rabi’u, 23, and Abubakar Ado, 30, with 230,600 pills of tramadol at Gadar Tamburawa. Another suspect, Hassan Abdullahi Ali, 25, was nabbed with 150 bottles of codeine syrup in Kofar Nassarawa on June 11.

In Ogun State, a raid in the Ibese area led to the seizure of 390kg of cannabis and the arrest of Muhammad Sani, Nura Mohammad, and Samaila Rabe on June 10. On June 12, NDLEA officers busted a factory in Sagamu town producing “skuchies,” arresting seven suspects and recovering 387 liters of skuchies, 70 liters of industrial codeine, 25kg of cannabis, and various quantities of tramadol, rophynol, and diazepam.

In the Federal Capital Territory, operatives arrested two suspects, Muhammad Abba, 33, and Samson Ehizogie, 42, with 3,550 bottles of “Akuskura,” a new mixture of psychotropic substances, during a raid on June 14 in Garki Area 10 and Dutse Suokale.