The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has dismantled an international drug trafficking syndicate with the arrest of 24-year-old Thai national, Ms. Pattaphi Wimonnat. She was caught attempting to smuggle 43 parcels of a synthetic cannabis strain known as ‘Canadian Loud’ into Nigeria.
NDLEA spokesman, Femi Babafemi, confirmed the arrest in a statement on Sunday. The illegal consignment, weighing 46.6 kilograms, was intercepted during a routine check at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Ikeja, Lagos, on Thursday, February 20.
Wimonnat, who admitted to being a hired trafficker, was apprehended after disembarking from a Qatar Airways flight from Thailand, with a stopover in Doha, Qatar. Babafemi revealed that she was promised $3,000 by the drug cartel for successfully delivering the drugs in Nigeria.
In addition to this arrest, the NDLEA thwarted another drug smuggling attempt at the Lagos airport on February 21. Authorities intercepted 68 parcels of Ghanaian Loud, weighing 42.2 kg, concealed within the walls of crated cartons destined for London. Three suspects, including a freight agent and two dispatch riders, were arrested before the mastermind, Samuel Bitris, was traced and apprehended at his residence in Ajah, Lagos.
The NDLEA also conducted significant operations across the country. At the Port Harcourt Port Complex in Onne, Rivers State, officers seized 49 cartons containing 49,000 Tamol (Tramadol) pills on February 20, during a joint operation with the Nigeria Customs Service.
On February 22, two individuals, Bello Adamu (40) and Pius Azuka (42), were arrested in Nasarawa State with 517 kg of skunk, while Usman Ruwa (43) and Yunusa Haruna (45) were apprehended in Niger State for transporting 62.7 kg of skunk in a Toyota Corolla.
