NDLEA arrests Chinese for cocaine dealing, seizes N4.3bn drugs at ports

The operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a Chinese man, 58-year-old Tianzhen Yen (alias Jackie), for alleged dealing in cocaine in Lagos State.

The NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday, November 24, 2024.

Babafemi said a syndicate operated by Yen was also dismantled by NDLEA operatives following his arrest at his hotel in the Ikeja area of Lagos.

Babafemi stated that the officers of the Seme Special Area Command of the NDLEA had on Thursday, November 21, intercepted a 40-year-old suspect, Yakubu Emmanuel Mark, in a commercial bus going to Ghana at the Gbaji checkpoint along Badagry-Seme Expressway based on credible intelligence.

He said when the suspect was searched, 750 grams of cocaine were found in his bag.

The NDLEA spokesman disclosed that a swift follow-up operation was organised to trace and arrest the kingpin behind the trans-border drug trafficking syndicate, who turned out to be a Chinese citizen, Tianzhen Yen.

“He was eventually traced to MC Hotel behind Alade market, Allen Avenue, Ikeja, Lagos. When his hotel room was searched, 4.3 grams of cocaine, a gram of methamphetamine, two electronic weighing scales, and Chinese National Identification Number Card, among other exhibits were recovered while he was arrested in the vicinity of the hotel,” Babafemi stated.

He added that the NDLEA operatives intercepted 92 parcels of Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis, with a combined weight of 23.25kg concealed in two vehicles imported from Canada, a Nissan car and a GMC bus, at the Tincan seaport in Lagos on Friday, November 22.

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Babafemi said the discovery was made during a joint examination of a container from Canada by NDLEA officers, the officers of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), and other stakeholders.

Babafemi said the NDLEA operatives also intercepted two containers of imported opioids during a joint examination with Customs officers and other security agencies at the Port Harcourt Ports complex, Onne in Rivers State on Thursday, November 21.

The NDLEA spokesperson noted that 168,000 bottles of codeine-based syrup worth N1,176,000,000 were recovered from one of the containers while the second one contains 4,500,000 pills of super royal tramadol 225mg valued at N3,150,000,000, bringing the combined value of both the codeine and tramadol consignments to N4,326,000,000.

Babafemi quoted the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), as commending the officers of the anti-drug agency for the arrests and seizures.

Marwa stated that the officers’ operational successes across the country, especially their balanced approach to drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction efforts, were well appreciated.

The Star