Man declares grinded Tramadol as yam flour

TRACKING____Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have apprehended a 51-year-old man, Usman Hassan Ramadan, for allegedly being in possession of a substance suspected to be tramadol.

Ramadan, who claimed to be a former soldier from Borno State, was arrested at outbound screening point on his way to board Ethiopian Airlines flight to Dubai. He had stuffed his luggage with black and white polythene bags containing a powdery substance which upon inspection by officers and men of the NDLEA turned out to be grounded Tramadol tablets.

The NDLEA spokesman, Jonah Achema, said initially, the suspect claimed he was carrying ‘alubo,’ local yam flour but later confessed that he had to grind the tramadol tablets in order to deceive security operatives.

He said: “The suspect claimed to have sustained injuries during the civil war and that he needed Tramadol at all times to relieve him of the pain.”

He added: “We have made seizures of Tramadol several times, but that it now comes in powdery form calls for extra vigilance. It means drug merchants are never short of ideas. No matter what, we will continue to beat them to their antics.”