Officers of the Special Operation Unit of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in Aba have discovered a cartel controlled by three suspected drug barons.

The agency’s Director, Media and Advocacy Femi Babafemi, announced this on Sunday in Abuja.

The agency said that the suspects were arrested and the warehouses linked to the drugs were “taken down”.

NDLEA said further that substances suspected to be cocaine and methamphetamine in consignments were seized.

It said that the drugs could worth more than N4.1 billion in street value.

Babafemi said that the special operation was conducted between June 13 and June 14 at Boundary Avenue and a residence on Ohia road in Aba.

“Months of intelligence gathering led to the arrest of the leaders and the seizure of 20.76 kg of cocaine and methamphetamine from them.

Codeine shipment from India intercepted by NDLEA

He also said that the operatives of the agency in Lagos State uncovered an expansive warehouse stocked with a large consignment of a substance suspected to be codeine-based syrup located in Kirikiri.

Babafemi said that four persons were suspected to be connected with the importation and distribution of the substance.

He said that they were arrested during an intelligence-led raid on the facility.

“No few than 82,000 bottles of the opioid worth more than N600 million in street value were recovered from them.

“Also, a truck and two buses used for distributing the substance were recovered from the premises on June 10”, he said.