N1.1bn cheques, 10.89kg cocaine intercepted at Lagos airport

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have intercepted travellers’ cheques of foreign currencies with a total value of N1.157 billion at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos.

Spokesman of the NDLEA, Mr Femi Babafemi, on Sunday in Abuja, said one suspect, Oguma Richard Uchenna, was arrested while attempting to export the cheques which were neatly concealed inside four hard cover books disguised as academic project literatures to the United Kingdom (UK).

According to him, the financial instruments, suspected to be counterfeit, were discovered on Wednesday April 27, at the NAHCO export shed during cargo examination of some consignments meant for exportation to the UK.

He said, “A breakdown of the cheques shows they have monetary values of $287,623.31; $1,456,300 and 1,297,800 Euros.”

Also, the NDLEA operatives foiled an attempt by traffickers to smuggle into Nigeria 10.89kg of cocaine through a Qatar Airways flight.

The illicit drug was hidden in seven children’s duvets in an unaccompanied bag from Brazil.

Meanwhile, in Ondo, 401kg of cannabis was recovered and two suspects, Julius Dapo (56) and Emeka Ikebuaku (32), were arrested on April 24.

On the same day, a transborder drug trafficker, Chigbo Chinonye (42), was arrested with amphetamine weighing 2.5kg and heroin weighing 0.5kg on Oron-Ibaka Road in Akwa Ibom on his way to Cameroon.

In Kaduna, a total of 47 cartons of suspected fake tramadol comprising 2,350,000 tablets, weighing 1222kg were seized in Zaria on Monday, April 25, while a dealer, Chinedu Asogwa, was arrested the following day on the Abuja-Kaduna Expressway with 2919 bottles of codeine, measuring 291.9litres and a gross weight of 396kg, revealed the agency.