Officers of the Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS), BEECROFT at the weekend conducted a sting operation along Lagos waterways, intercepting a large wooden boat laden with weeds suspected to be cannabis sativa with an estimated street value of N128 million
The seizure was made at the Ibeju-Lekki waterfront by naval officers deployed to Operation WATER GUARD.
The Commander of NNS BEECROFT, Commodore Kolawole Oguntuga, who confirmed the seizure, said the owners fled when they sighted the naval gunboat.
Commodore Oguntuga revealed that the team was able to track the movement of the boat from Badagry until it got to Ibeju-Lekki with the aid of the Nigerian Navy Maritme Domain Awareness facility, Falcon Eye Alignment.
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“As at the time of the arrest, the boat was laden with 64 bags of cannabis sativa, weighing over 2,500kg,” he added.
Similarly, officers of the Commander during the routing raid of criminal hideouts around Alaba-Rago intercepted another sack containing over 23 wraps of substances suspected to be derivatives of cannabis sativa known as SK, in the early hours of January 14, 2024.
“Efforts of the Nigerian Navy Ship BEECROFT is commendable as it has successfully help in curbing influx of narcotics into the country through Lagos waterways.
“The seizure is more spectacular especially recognizing the nexus between drugs, violence and crime. Aside from the fact that ill-gotten wealth from the sale of narcotics could be used to finance criminality, the abuse also poses grave risk to psyche and health of users, resulting in unpredictable behaviours with attendant consequences on national security.
“The intercepted narcotics have been handed over to officials of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for necessary action,” he said.
Commodore Oguntuga stated that the interception underscored the commitment of the Nigerian Navy to fight insecurity as outlined in the Strategic Directives of the Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ikechukwu Ogalla.
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