Sponsors of abandoned N351m drug still at large - NDLEA

The Nigeria Drug Law Enforcement Agency is yet to arrest any suspect in connection with the 29.260kg of heroin worth N351m it intercepted at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos, abandoned by the importers recently.

It said the owners of the drug, which were concealed in footballs and rugs, gave fake departure and destination addresses.

The agency’s sniffer dogs had detected the drug in a consignment imported from Pakistan through the Nigerian Aviation Handling Company shed.

 According to The Head, Public Affairs of the agency, Mr. Mitchell Ofoyeju; “It takes time to arrest drug barons as we are dealing with sophisticated drug cartels. From the way the drugs were neatly and professionally packed, the sponsors usually give fake addresses. What we do is, when we intercept such consignments, we operate discreetly until someone comes to claim the suspected luggage.

“If the suspects feel the coast is not clear, they step back but when they feel that the coast is clear, they come out to pick up their consignment. We have made some arrests this way. To us, the interception is a huge success because our main objective is to remove hard drugs from the system.”

The rug consignment of 14kg had come as cargo on a KLM flight, while the other two consignments of balls, weighing 10.230kg and 5.030kg, were imported on Saudi Arabia Airline. (Credit: Punch)