NDLEA Discovers Hidden Drug Compartment in Tanker

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) uncovered a concealed compartment for illicit drugs in a 20,000-litre fuel tanker and arrested a previously convicted cocaine trafficker during operations across several states, including Lagos, Adamawa, Ondo, Kaduna, Bauchi, Ekiti, Kogi, Taraba, and Enugu, on September 6. The agency's Directorate of Operations and General Investigation (DOGI) tracked the alleged mastermind of a cocaine shipment intercepted at a Lagos courier company.

This investigation followed the interception on July 31 of a 1.2kg cocaine consignment concealed inside phone chargers, destined for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The suspect, previously arrested in 2011 at Murtala Muhammed International Airport for ingesting 900 grams of cocaine and 130 grams of heroin, had served a five-year sentence and changed his name to Dunu Bethel Ebubechukwu.

The latest operation adds to a series of significant drug seizures by the NDLEA, including a recent captagon seizure valued at over N6.2 billion.