NDLEA arrests members of Fentanyl syndicate in Anambra
OPERATIVES of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency ( NDLEA) have arrested members of a syndicate involved in the illicit importation and trafficking of lethal synthetic opioid, Fentanyl.
Fentanyl, also spelled fentanil, is a highly potent synthetic piperidine opioid drug primarily used as an analgesic. Because fentanyl is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine, its primary clinical utility is in pain management for cancer patients and those recovering from painful surgical operations. Fentanyl is also used as a sedative.
Fentanyl’s ease of manufacture and high potency makes it easier to produce and smuggle, resulting in fentanyl replacing other abused narcotics and becoming more widely used. The Guardianlearnt that Fentanyl is 100 times stronger than tramadol and capable of causing mass casualty among the youth population being targeted by the cartels.
Spokesperson for the Agency, Femi Babafemi, yesterday, said the two members of the syndicate: Odoh Collins Oguejiofor and Oliver Chigozie Uzoma were arrested at Ogbogwu market, Onitsha Head Bridge, Onitsha South Local Council of Anambra State.
According to him, the wellcoordinated clinical operation was coming on the heels of an alert issued by the antinarcotics Agency on Tuesday, November 22, 2022, that some criminal elements were plotting to flood the Nigerian market with the drug, which is currently responsible for over 70 per cent overdose deaths, as well as a major contributor to fatal and nonfatal overdoses in the United States ( U. S.).
According to the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC), Fentanyl is 80 times as potent as morphine and 100 times more potent than heroin.
“Following credible intelligence and synergy with local and international partners, the NDLEA was able to mobilise necessary assets to trace the illicitly manufactured drug to the Ogbogwu market, Onitsha Head Bridge, reputed to be the largest drug market in West Africa, after months of undercover monitoring.
“Convinced that the Agency has gathered sufficient evidence to nail the suspects, Chairman/ Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohammed
Buba Marwa ( Retd), ordered a deployment of operatives to pick members of the syndicate one after the other.
“Odoh Collins Oguejiofor was the first to be arrested while on a business mission with packets of 100 microgrammes of Fentanyl, while the arrest of Uzoma, who is a major dealer in other illicitly manufactured pharmaceutical opioids, including Fentanyl, followed.
“While packs of liquid Fentanyl were recovered from Odoh, different quantities of banned and controlled drugs, including Fentanyl were seized from Uzoma.
“They include: Ampules of Fentanyl injection; Ozempic solution for injection in prefilled pens; Ampules of Sustanon 250mg/ ml; Ampules of Rivavirin injection 200mg/ 2ml; Ampules of Erythropoietin injection; Ampules of Recombinant Anti Rho- D Immunoglobulin injection 300mg; Ampules of Pethidine 100mg/ 2ml solution for injection and Zoladex 3.6mg Goserelin,” Babafemi added in a statement.