NDLEA intercepts tramadol, diazepam meant for insurgents at Borno

Chinazor Megbolu

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) operatives have intercepted a total of 34,950 capsules of Tramadol and Diazepam in Lagos.

The suspected drugs were said to be meant to be transported to insurgents’ camps in Borno State.

The agency said a 25-year-old suspect, Mr. Mohammed Isah, was nabbed by the agency while trying to move the seized drugs from Lagos to Borno.

The NDLEA disclosed that he was arrested last Tuesday at SD Motors park, Agege, Lagos with 12,390 capsules of Tramadol weighing 4.8kg and 22,560 tablets of Diazepam with a total weight of 14kg, bringing the total weight of the exhibits to 18.8kg.

In a statement signed at the weekend by the spokesperson of NDLEA, Mr. Femi Babafemi, he said  “Under interrogation, the suspect who hails from Mandara Mountain, Ashgashia, in Gwoza LGA, Borno State said he came to Lagos in 2013 and started life with riding a commercial motorcycle (Okada), then tricycle (Keke Marwa) and currently drives township bus from Ikeja to Ojota.

“On Friday, 28th May, one Kakali Abubakar who also hails from Mandara Mountain invited him to see him at Ezekiel Street, Ikeja, where he gave him the assignment of transporting the drugs to Maiduguri for a fee of N50, 000, which he accepted.

“He said Kakali advised him to either board a Tanker or Trailer from Lagos to Maiduguri to avoid being caught. He agreed but rather travelled in a bus operated by SD Motors from Lagos to Kano and then take another vehicle to Maiduguri,” the statement said.

The organisation further said the suspect claimed he accepted the offer because of the monetary benefit due to pressure on his finances as his wife and three children were displaced by the Boko Haram activities who are currently in a refugee camp in Maiduguri, the state capital.

The statement, however, maintained that through investigation, it revealed that before Mohammed’s arrest, Kakali had travelled out of Lagos to Maiduguri to await the arrival of the consignment.

Meanwhile, Chairman/Chief Executive, NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd) in his remarks, hailed the officers and men of the Lagos State Command of the Agency for their vigilance and blocking such volume of drugs from getting to Borno State