Police Arrest Indian Hemp Merchants in Lagos, Seize 7 Bags

Matilda Omonaiye/

Two suspected Indian hemp merchants have been held by the police in Lagos.

According to a statement from the police spokesman, CSP Chike Oti, the arrest was part of efforts to rid the state of illicit drugs and banned substances.

The suspects, identified as 60-year-old Tajudeen Atanda, and Rasheed Kehinde, 31, were arrested by officers attached to Maroko Division, at noon on Sunday, September 16, 2018. The officers were on routine anti-crime patrol when they intercepted a red Volkswagen Gulf saloon car marked KJA 377 EY.

The statement says: “When the car was searched, seven bags of weeds suspected to be Indian hemp (Cannabis marijuana), carefully hidden to avoid being seized by security operatives, were recovered from the two occupants, namely, Tajudeen Atanda, 60 years and Rasheed Kehinde, 31 years.

“The suspects who were arrested by the team at Ghetto waterside, Marwa, Lekki Phase one, are currently undergoing interrogation at Maroko police station. Both men have confessed to the crime, stating that the weeds believed to be Indian hemp are meant for consumers in the state, mainly youths.

“The Command’s Commissioner of Police, CP Edgal Imohimi, advises those dealing in illicit drugs and banned substances to have a change of heart as their quest for money is adversely affecting the wholesome development of our youths. He warns that the Command will be unrelenting in arresting drug dealers and users in the state.”