NDLEA intercepts US, Europe-bound drugs hidden in shoe soles

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has reported the interception of illicit drugs cleverly concealed in shoe soles and hair attachments destined for the United States and various European countries.

In a statement released on Sunday, NDLEA spokesman Femi Babafemi revealed that the anti-narcotics agency made these significant seizures at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Ikeja, Lagos.

“On October 12, 2024, we seized a total of 2,118 tramadol pills hidden in the soles of 13 pairs of shoes being shipped to Cyprus at the airport’s export shed. In a follow-up operation on Thursday, October 24, we recovered an additional 380 tablets from the home of the sender, Okinwa Uchnna, in Enugu. During the arrest, we also confiscated ₦968,880 in cash and a Toyota Avalon car with the registration number UWN 389 AS,” he stated.

“In another operation on Thursday, October 24, NDLEA officers from the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation (DOGI) intercepted at three courier companies a total of 293 ampoules of promethazine and pentazocine injection, as well as 1.690kg of cannabis and tramadol tablets concealed in hair attachments and shoe soles bound for the United States, United Kingdom, and Oman.”

“Additionally, NDLEA operatives, in collaboration with the Customs Service and other security agencies, intercepted an astonishing Twenty-Six Million Two Hundred and Fifty Thousand (26,250,000) tramadol pills and Five Hundred and Eight Thousand Four Hundred (508,400) bottles of codeine-based syrup during a thorough examination of watch-listed containers at the Tincan and Port Harcourt ports between Tuesday, October 22, and Wednesday, October 23. The street value of these drugs is estimated at Sixteen Billion Six Hundred and Eighty-Three Million Eight Hundred Thousand Naira (₦16,683,800,000).”