National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 35-year-old woman, Rakiya Haladu, with 45 bags of cannabis sativa weighing about 474 kilograms and worth N11,250,000.
The arrest was made by the Nasarawa State Command of NDLEA.
The Command also arrested 54 drug suspects comprising of 12 dealers and 42 drug addicts across the 13 local government areas and 18 development areas of the state.
Parading the suspects at the Command in Lafia on Tuesday, the Commandant, Justice Arinze, said ten of the drug dealers have been convicted at the Federal High Court sitting in Lafia, the state capital.
He added that the Command busted into a warehouse in Lafia and arrested a suspected housewife allegedly engaged in drug trafficking.
Arinze explained that the achievement recorded followed the immediate provision of logistics to the Command by the Chairman/Executive of NDLEA, Brigadier Gen. Buba Marwa (Rtd), adding that this would go a long way in ensuring the sustenance of the tempo of their operational activities in the state.
He said, “The Command busted a warehouse in Lafia and recovered about 45 bags of cannabis sativa weighing about 474 kilograms before arresting a suspected female drug dealer, Rakiya Halsdu.”
He added that a total of 604 kilograms of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances have been seized, saying high seizure of pentazocine, an opiate narcotic, is a pointer that it is fast gain momentum as the preferred drug of abuse.
He stated that the first phase of the operation “Hana Kwaya” which started two months ago have covered some local government areas in the state, noting that the notorious drug joints raided included Domain, behind Adoma palace, back of police station.
Other areas were Kilima, Angwa Jaba, Downtown, Lanchika, Akruba, Gimare, Agyaragu downtown, Tipper garage in the Lafia Local Government Area of the state.
According to him, operation “Hana Kwaya” which is their initiative is aimed at collaborating with other security agencies, particularly the Nigeria army to raid drug joints and markets in hostile locations where their personnel used to be attacked in the past.
He disclosed that each of the 45 bags seized sold at the rate of N50,000 with the total amount being N11,250,000, noting that this was the biggest single seizure of cannabis sativa since the inception of the Command in 1999.
He, however, hinted that the husband of the suspect arrested, who is currently on the run, was actually the Command’s main target, promising that the command would surely get him arrested and ensure he faces the wrath of the law to serve as a deterrent to others.
