NDLEA Storms Edo Forests, Razes 317 Tons Cannabis Warehouses, Arrests Four Drug Trafficking Suspects

Hours after the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd) vowed to make life tough for drug barons and cartels in the new year if they fail to back out of the illicit trade, operatives of the Agency have dealt a lethal blow to a cluster of cannabis syndicates operating in the Opuje forests in Edo state, South South Nigeria.

This is contained in a press release signed by the organization’s Director, Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, affirming that the  massive warehouses and tents storing over 317,417 kilograms (317.4 metric tons) of the psychoactive substance were destroyed and set ablaze in a two-day operation.

Babafemi confirmed that at least, a police impersonator, Omoruan Theophilus, 37, who parades as a Police Inspector to convey the drugs from the forests to the cities and three others: Aigberuan Jacob, 42; Ekeinde Anthony Zaza, 53, and Naomi Patience Ohiewere, 42, were arrested in connection with the drugs.

“The Opuje community in Owan West Local Government Area, Edo State, is notorious for cannabis cultivation, where the cartels invest huge resources, cutting down economic trees of the forest reserves and cultivating cannabis on a large scale, running into hundreds of hectares. After harvest, they build warehouses inside the forest reserves and employ the services of armed youths to protect the warehouses 24/7.

“Accessing the forest on Wednesday 18th January took hours of trekking by hundreds of NDLEA operatives who were ambushed with bonfire by armed youths on their way out of the community the following day but were able to successfully leave the area without any casualty except the heavy investment losses inflicted on the cartels” said the statement.

Babafemi also disclosed that the Agency Thursday 19th January, 2023 through intelligence received from the Drug Enforcement Administration of the United States busted a criminal syndicate involved in the trafficking of fake USD currency in Lagos.

During a combined operation carried out by NDLEA operatives with their EFCC colleagues, the release pointed out that a total of $269,000 counterfeit US dollars were recovered from the syndicate at Oniru Shoprite area of Lekki, Lagos, where three suspects were arrested.

Meanwhile, NDLEA boss has commended 89 officers involved in the two special operations  for their professionalism and commitment.

 Marwa has since directed that the fake dollars recovered and suspects arrested in the Lekki operation be immediately transferred to the EFCC for possible prosecution.