Gunmen attack NDLEA operatives, rescue drug baron in Lagos

Gunmen have attacked some operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) who were trailing a drug baron from the Agege area of Lagos State.

It was gathered that the NDLEA operatives numbering about 20 were attacked by the gunmen while trying to intercept a truck conveying some quantities of Canadian Loud on Awolowo Road in Ikoyi, Lagos State at about 1 a.m.

It was further learned that the operatives of the anti-drug agency, with the assistance of some soldiers, engaged the assailants in a gun battle while hoodlums escaped with the baron who had been on the watch-list of the agency.

The incident was confirmed by the NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, noting that the anti-narcotics officers successfully seized a truck-load of Canadian Loud during the operation.

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Babafemi disclosed that the consignment was usually imported from Canada and shipped through countries like Ghana and Benin Republic from where the cartels try to smuggle them into Lagos

“Operatives of the agency trailed a drug movement from the Agege area of Lagos Mainland to the Ikoyi area of Lagos Island in the early hours of Tuesday, January 10, 2023.

“Our operatives blocked the truck and in the process, some suspected fake security agents who were escorting the truck struggled with our operatives, and they eventually escaped with the suspect.

“But our men were able to get the drug-filled truck. The gunmen damaged NDLEA’s operational vehicle and tried to demobilise our operatives as they damaged the windscreen of the vehicle.

“But our operatives got the support of some soldiers who were nearby during the attack, and the soldiers supported the efforts of our operatives, leading our operatives to successfully move the truck containing the drugs to our office,” the NDLEA spokesman disclosed.

The Star