Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency have taken into custody two wanted heads of transnational criminal organisations with a multi-billion-naira worth of illicit drugs.

The anti-narcotics agency also seized assets from the traffickers after weeks of intelligence-led operations within and outside the country.

This was made known on Sunday by the agency’s Director, Media & Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, at the headquarters in Abuja.

Babafemi stated that the duo, who concealed cocaine and heroin in their bellies, were arrested after its operatives intercepted consignments designated to Paris, France and Doha, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.

The statement read in parts, “Operatives at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, MMIA, Ikeja Lagos on Tuesday 10th October succeeded in taking into custody, Hakeem Babatunde Salami, the arrowhead of “Tajudeen Babatunde Abioye Transnational Criminal Organisation” involved in the illicit trade of several narcotics including cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine and ephedrine between Nigeria, Brazil, Ghana, South Africa, Mozambique, and Europe.

“He fled Nigeria to South Africa upon the arrest of a member of his syndicate, Suleiman Babatunde Oba at the Lagos airport on August 25 over an attempt to export 25.10kgs of ephedrine to South Africa.

“Hakeem Babatunde Salami was however smoked out of hiding through partnership with South African authorities and other intelligence and investigative mechanisms. While some of his luxury vehicles have been seized and his home in Surulere, Lagos, sealed, other members of the cartel are already in custody including Suleiman and Godwin Edet Mathew.”

Babafemi stated further, “In his statement, he claimed he was into the importation of building materials from China to Nigeria and used to sell gold in South Africa before delving into the illicit drug trade about two years ago.

“The head of another cartel, Okafor Ikechukwu Williams (aka Jantu) and his wife, Okafor Ifeyinwa Grace were also taken into custody on Thursday 5th October when NDLEA operatives raided their hideout at 9 Awa Street, Ago Palace, Okota area of Lagos, where they recovered 27.566 kilogrammes of methamphetamine concealed in a blue box and two sacks, ready for export to Europe and Asia.

“Their Lexus RX350 marked ABJ 512 AY parked in the house was also seized during the operation. Their arrest followed weeks of intelligence gathering about the activities of the criminal network.”

According to the statement, “At the Abuja airport, operatives on Friday 6th October arrested a drug trafficker, Nwofor Ejiogu Charles, 45, during the outward clearance of Qatar Airways flight QR 1432 to Doha. After a body scan revealed he ingested cocaine, he was placed under observation during which he excreted 75 pellets of cocaine weighing 1.653 kgs. At the point of his arrest, Nwofor who was the last passenger to board his flight offered to compromise an NDLEA officer with $3,000 to free him.

“The following day, Saturday 7th October, another trafficker, Nwufo Charles Okwudili, 45, was also arrested while attempting to board Lufthansa Airlines flight LH 0595 to Paris, France via Frankfurt, Germany. After being put through a body scanner, he was taken into a recovery room where he excreted 96 wraps of heroin he ingested with a total weight of 1.413 kgs.

“Meanwhile, NDLEA operatives on patrol along Okene -Lokoja-Abuja expressway on Tuesday 10th October, intercepted a commercial bus coming from Lagos to Kano. A search of the bus led to the seizure of four million, eight hundred and eighty thousand US dollars ($4,880,000), and fifty-seven million Céfa, (CFA57,000,000) suspected to be counterfeits.

Too bad