Nigeria’s anti-drug agency has seized a record 1.8 tons of cocaine from a a residential estate’s warehouse in Lagos on Monday, September 19. The drugs were estimated to be valued at $278 million. The authorities responsible for executing the drug bust described it as likely the country’s largest bust ever.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency informed the sources that five people – the warehouse manager and four “drug barons” were arrested in connection with the drugs. One of the drug barons was profiled as a Jamaican. The National Drug Law Enforcement agency stated that the suspects were members of an international drug syndicate which the agency has been trailing since 2018.
According to the agency, the drugs were found in a secluded estate in the Ikorodu area of Lagos on Sunday. The agency found these drugs when “the cartel was trying to sell them to buyers in Europe, Asia and other parts of the world.”
In a statement published by the agency, along with photos of the suspects and the drugs, It was stated that the drugs were stored in 10 travel bags and 13 drums.
The Agency has described these arrests and seizure as “a historic blow to the drug cartels and a strong warning that they will all be going down if they fail to realize that the game has changed.”
Drug raids and seizures have significantly risen in numbers in West Africa since the last year, which indicates that the traffickers have made the continent a hub to move their illegal products between South America and Europe.
West Africa is a major transit centre for cocaine made in Latin America and sold in Europe.
In April this year, over two tons of cocaine were seized in Ivory Coast, while 9.5 tons of cocaine were recovered in Cape Verde.
