The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has announced the interception of an international drug syndicate’s attempt to smuggle 845 wraps of cocaine, weighing 18.72 kilograms, into Lagos via the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Ikeja. The drugs, valued at approximately ₦4.49 billion, were discovered in two lavatories of an Ethiopian Airlines flight from Addis Ababa on Tuesday, October 29, 2024, during cabin cleaning post-landing.
In a statement on Sunday, NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, revealed that the cocaine was concealed in nine polythene bags hidden within the waste bins of the aircraft’s rear lavatories. Following the discovery, around 30 suspects have been questioned in connection with the seizure. Investigations indicate that the drugs were transported from Brazil to Ethiopia by couriers who ingested and later excreted the packages in Addis Ababa. Other traffickers then attempted to smuggle them into Nigeria through Lagos before being intercepted, with the assistance of Ethiopian Airlines and airport stakeholders.
On October 28, NDLEA officers also prevented attempts by syndicates to export 2.928 kilograms of cocaine, cannabis, and tramadol (225 mg) hidden in body cream containers and artwork to Australia, the UAE, and the UK through courier services in Lagos. The following day, NDLEA operatives seized 754,000 tablets of tapentadol and acetaminophen (225 mg), valued at ₦525 million, from a watch-listed container from India at Lagos’s Apapa seaport in collaboration with Customs and other security agencies.
Elsewhere, in the Federal Capital Territory, a suspect, Mujahid Hamisu, 24, was arrested with 147,000 tramadol pills along the Kwali-Gwagwalada expressway, and Seun Abimbola, 47, was caught with 512 grams of methamphetamine during a raid at Giri Junction. In Kogi, NDLEA officers arrested Mercy Ameh, 28, on the Kabba-Obajana highway with fake Naira notes worth over ₦4.35 million. Another suspect, Shaibu Dahiru, 27, was caught with 68 blocks of cannabis weighing 27.4 kilograms on the Lokoja-Okene-Abuja road.
Additional arrests were made across various states. In Katsina, a known drug dealer, Usman Abba (alias Timaya), was apprehended with cannabis at Liberty Hotel. In Adamawa, Augustine Dike, 31, was detained with 50.3 grams of methamphetamine. In Taraba, operatives seized 49.795 kilograms of cannabis from Danlami Fakwa, 46, while 561 kilograms of the substance was found in a Sienna bus in Ondo. In Kaduna, Kabiru Yusuf, 25, was arrested with 51,813 pills of tramadol and exol 5, and in Edo State, a total of 912 kilograms of cannabis was recovered in separate raids.
NDLEA Chairman Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd) commended the agency’s MMIA, DOGI, Apapa, Kogi, FCT, Adamawa, Katsina, Kaduna, Ondo, Taraba, and Edo Commands for their dedication to these operations. He also praised their ongoing advocacy efforts under the War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) initiative across the country.
