Nigerian troops have intercepted a Chadian national suspected of ferrying illicit drugs meant for terrorist elements in the Lake Chad Islands.The suspect, identified as Mrs Rachael Samuel, 48, of Kelo in Chad’s Chari-Baguirmi Province, was arrested on Thursday during a search operation along the Maiduguri–Monguno axis, after troops flagged down a suspicious vehicle heading toward Kwatan Doron Baga in Kukawa Local Government Area, Borno State.
According to the operation’s Acting Military Information Officer, Mohammed Goni, items recovered from the suspect included seven compressed bundles of suspected Cannabis sativa weighing about 30 kilogrammes, two 10-litre containers of hydromercuric chloride (“Suck and Die”), and a carton containing 48 bottles of dry gin and 61 bottles of herbal alcoholic beverages. A mobile phone, two ATM cards, personal effects and cash were also recovered.
Goni said the items, valued at millions of naira, were destined for terrorist elements operating within the Lake Chad Islands, describing the arrest as part of a sustained campaign to degrade the logistics networks sustaining terrorism in the North-East.The suspect is in military custody, and the exhibits have been secured for handover to relevant law enforcement agencies for further investigation and prosecution.
