The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intercepted another shipment of seven containers containing 1,229,400 bottles of codeine worth N9,835,200,000.00.
The shipments were confiscated at the Onne Ports in Port Harcourt, the capital of Rivers State.
The seizure occurred just three weeks after 6,125 cartons of codeine syrup worth N7, 350,000,000.00 were confiscated in Rivers.
According to the agency’s spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, the latest seizure is the fourth and last set of such consignments to be placed on the Agency’s Maritime Special Operations Unit Targeting Team’s watchlist.
Babafemi said, “Barely three weeks after seizing 6,125 cartons of codeine syrup containing 1,050,000 bottles of the opioid worth over N7, 350,000,000.00 in street value, at the Port Harcourt Ports complex, Onne, Rivers State, operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, have again intercepted another batch of seven containers bearing one million two hundred and twenty-nine thousand four hundred bottles of the same substance worth over N9,835,200,000.00 at the Onne ports.
“The latest seizure made on Thursday, July 18, 2024, is the fourth and last set of such consignments that have been under the watchlist of the Agency’s Maritime Special Operations Unit Targeting Team, which worked in partnership with the Port Harcourt Ports Command of the Agency and other security agencies including the Customs Service for a 100 per cent joint examination of the targeted containers.”
Babafemi stated that during a combined examination with various security services on Thursday, seven containers were discovered to contain 8,774 cartons of codeine-based cough medication, totaling 1,229,400 bottles and weighing 184,410 kilogrammes.
He said, “This followed credible intelligence and months of diligent tracking of the consignments from their port of departure. At the joint examination of the containers with other security agencies on Thursday, all seven containers were found bearing a total of 8,774 cartons of codeine-based cough syrup with 1, 229, 400 bottles weighing 184,410 kilograms.
“A breakdown of the shipments that came from India via the Maersk Vigo Vessel shows that the container marked SEKU 6439421 has 875 cartons with 175,000 bottles of codeine weighing 26,250kg. Other items in the container include 70 cartons of chilli cutters and 55 cartons of Hyregra tablets weighing 1,100kg.”
He added, “Another container marked CMAU 9410422 contains 875 cartons of codeine with 175,000 bottles weighing 26,250 kg. Other items in the container include 15 cartons of chilli cutters and 60 cartons of Hyregra tablets weighing 1,200 kg. Also, the container marked TLLU 7595503 has a total of 1, 754 cartons of codeine syrup containing 179, 400 bottles weighing 26,910kg.
“Four other containers marked: TRHU 515117; CMAU 7877125; CMAU 8533700; and CMAU 3882205 contain 175,000 bottles of the same substance each in addition to other items such as chilli cutters, cartons of hyregra tablets and diclofenac used to mask the shipments.”
In response to the recent seizure, NDLEA Chairman/CEO Brig Gen Buba Marwa (retd) praised all of the officers, men and women from the Agency’s various formations who had been working on the targeted containers for months for their diligence, vigilance and professionalism.
Babafemi said, “Marwa equally praised the support received from other stakeholders at the ports that enabled the seamless and successful operations in the course of targeting the shipments. He said the operation, which had inflicted heavy losses on the cartels behind the shipments has further degraded their capacity and financial base.”
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