A fuel tanker loaded with more than 2.1 tonnes of cannabis has been intercepted by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) along the Akoko–Lokoja Expressway in Ondo State.
The 20,000-litre tanker, marked MKA 960 XC, was intercepted on Friday, September 4, after its driver allegedly refused to stop when pursued by NDLEA officers.
The driver reportedly abandoned the tanker at a church premises in Ugbe Akoko and escaped into a nearby bush.
In a statement by the NDLEA Spokesperson Femi Babafemi , a subsequent search of the vehicle uncovered a false compartment cleverly built into the tanker, where officers found 165 bags of cannabis weighing 2,145 kilogrammes.
The illicit consignment was concealed alongside the tanker’s legitimate fuel cargo, which was reportedly destined for Jos, Plateau State.
According to the statement, the tanker had previously been notorious for evading arrest, making the interception a significant breakthrough in its ongoing efforts to disrupt the use of legitimate commercial vehicles for transporting illicit drugs.
The NDLEA is expected to intensify efforts to track down the fleeing driver and unravel those behind the movement of the massive cannabis consignment.
The seizure highlights the increasingly sophisticated methods employed by drug traffickers to conceal illicit substances and move them across states under the cover of legitimate commercial activities.