The porosity of the nation's seaports and international borders was once more brought to the fore as another cocaine haul was yesterday discovered in Lagos port. Officials of the National Drug La Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) said that with the support of the United States Drug Administration (USDEA) it has uncovered a large consignment of concentrated cocaine at Nigeria's second busiest port, Tin Can Island Port (TCIP), Apapa, Lagos.
Yesterday discovery made it the third time hard drugs would be intercepted in TCIP as cocaine and heron worth billion of naira concealed in machineries were intercepted by security operatives last year.
The management of NDLEA in statement signed by its Head of Public Affairs, NDLEA, Mr. Ofoyeju Mitchell confirmed the development.
Giving an insight to the discovery, the agency pointed out that the narcotics were discovered on Thursday evening during physical examination of a 20 feet container.
The agency said the hard drugs were hidden in floor tiles and cement originating from Bolivia.
"The drug was concealed in twenty-five (25) packs of floor tiles containing 4 parcels each of powdery substance that tested positive to cocaine. A total of 100 parcels weighing 110 kilogramme with an estimated street value of N1.1 billion naira were found in the container", it said.
The Chairman and chief executive officer of NDLEA, Mr. Ahmadu Giade lauded the management of the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) at the port for their support and cooperation during the search operation.
The NDLEA boss who described the seizure as a positive start in the New Year also gave credit to the USDEA for supplying the intelligence report that led to the successful tracking of the illicit consignment.
His words: "This is a good start for the agency. Drug barons do not need any other warning that the clime is unsafe for their criminal act. I appreciate the role of the USDEA and the Nigerian Customs Service. This spirit of cooperation is good for our collective security interest".
The NDLEA boss stated that investigation was in progress and the suspected consignee was being interrogated by narcotic investigators.
"This search operation is a continuation of undercover work that commenced since November 2010. Investigation is in progress. Already, the suspected consignee is being interrogated and more arrests are in the offing. Together, we shall make the country drug free as no drug baron will go unpunished," he said.
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