Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have busted a large-scale skuchies factory in Ikorodu, Lagos State, seizing thousands of bottles of the dangerous cocktail made from cannabis and blackcurrant drink.
The agency, in a statement on Sunday by its spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, said the raid was part of its intensified efforts to clamp down on illicit psychoactive mixtures gaining popularity among young Nigerians.
Acting on credible intelligence, NDLEA operatives stormed the Caritas, Ibeshe axis of Ikorodu on Thursday, September 11, and recovered 6,029 bottles of skuchies already packaged for distribution, alongside 4,232kg of cannabis. The factory manager, Joy Awosika, was arrested, while another suspect, Akeem Oriola, was nabbed the same day in Mushin with 26kg of skunk.
Beyond Lagos, NDLEA recorded several other seizures nationwide. In Abuja, a 29-year-old dispatch rider was caught with 50.7 grams of cocaine and 66 grams of Loud. In Oyo State, three women were arrested with 17kg of skunk. Along the Zaria–Kano Road, operatives intercepted 100,000 tramadol pills from a 38-year-old suspect. In Kano, agents seized 196 litres of Akuskura, 34.1kg of skunk, 493 tubes of rubber solution, and 25 litres of “suck and die.”
In Anambra, a couple was arrested with 13.9kg of methamphetamine and 5.3kg of skunk, while another suspect was caught with a cocktail of meth, tramadol, swinol, heroin, and skunk. Similarly, in Yobe, NDLEA operatives recovered 22.1kg of cannabis from a suspect’s residence.
A joint NDLEA–police–vigilante operation in Ogun State intercepted 394kg of skunk from three trans-border traffickers, while three motorcycles used to ferry the drugs were seized.
In Edo State, NDLEA operatives destroyed a massive 6.78-hectare cannabis plantation at Ugbogyi forest, Ovia South West LGA, weighing 16,966.633kg of skunk. They also recovered 112 bags of processed cannabis weighing 1,176kg from the site, arresting four suspects identified as Ebenezer Ewang, Oshore John, Emmanuel Monday, and David Sunday.
The NDLEA stressed that its operations will continue nationwide to dismantle drug cartels and check the spread of illicit substances.
