The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has busted a secret laboratory in Ajao Estate, Isolo, Lagos, where a synthetic strain of cannabis, popularly known as Colorado or Colos, was being produced inside a residential building.
According to a statement by NDLEA’s Director, Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, the discovery followed weeks of intelligence and surveillance after previous seizures indicated that the once-imported psychoactive drug was now being manufactured locally.
During the Thursday raid, operatives arrested Stephen Kelechi Imoh, 30, alleged to have turned his apartment into a drug lab. The agency recovered 16.2kg of freshly made Colos, 1.7kg of cannabinol, and large quantities of chemical precursors used in production.
In another Lagos operation, NDLEA officers arrested Afeez Salisu (aka Malu) in Mushin with 16.4kg of Ghana Loud and bottles of Colorado. The agency also detained Godspower George Osahenrumwen (aka Steady Boy), a 20-year-old music artist, for attempting to receive a 77.2kg consignment of Loud cannabis hidden in imported bathtubs from New York. His manager, Zion Osazee Omigie (aka Zee Money), is currently on the run.
Babafemi further confirmed that simultaneous raids across Kaduna, Ogun, Edo, Ondo, Kwara, Bauchi, and Taraba States led to multiple arrests and seizures. In Ogun, three men were caught with 1,779kg of skunk, while in Edo, NDLEA intercepted 1,455kg of the same substance in two Toyota Sienna buses.
In Ondo, officers linked Mrs. Ige Olarewaju (32) to 2,829kg of skunk recovered in Ogbese, while Samuel Adebayo was arrested in Akure with 737kg. Other suspects across Taraba, Kwara, and Bauchi were caught with tramadol, methamphetamine, and Akuskura.
NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended the officers for their professionalism and resilience, assuring that the agency would sustain its nationwide War Against Drug Abuse (WADA).
“We will continue to deny drug barons the benefits of their criminal enterprise and ensure every identified syndicate is dismantled,” Marwa stated.
