The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has dismantled several drug trafficking networks operating across eight states, intercepting consignments linked to the United Kingdom and recovering more than 2.3 tonnes of assorted illicit drugs.
The seizures included Colorado, popularly known as “Colos”, tramadol, pregabalin, cannabis and other controlled substances, while a real estate agent, a tour agent, a 70-year-old woman and several other suspects were arrested.
NDLEA spokesman, Femi Babafemi, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday, saying operatives intercepted two consignments of Colorado concealed in consolidated cargoes from the United Kingdom at the import shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.
In the first operation, 27 parcels of the synthetic cannabis weighing 32.2 kilogrammes were recovered from a large luggage. A real estate agent, Abideen Salami, was arrested last Wednesday while attempting to collect the consignment using a secret collection code allegedly sent by his brother based in the UK.
A follow-up operation targeting another UK shipment led to the arrest of 44-year-old Nurudeen Kadiri, who was allegedly designated to receive a second consignment of Colorado weighing 12.25 kilogrammes. He reportedly told investigators that the drugs were sent by his brother in the UK.
The agency’s Directorate of Operations and General Investigation (DOGI) also uncovered attempts by traffickers to exploit unconventional concealment methods.
At Maza Maza motor park in Lagos, operatives recovered three packs of Colorado hidden inside a music speaker allegedly modified for transportation to Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, and eventually Liberia.
A tour agent, 41-year-old Ifeanyi Augustine, and the alleged owner of the consignment, 46-year-old Obasi Ugochuckwu, were arrested during a sting operation at a nearby eatery.
At Iddo motor park, operatives on Friday, September 11, arrested Ifeanyi Nwokolo Henry while he was allegedly attempting to dispatch 2.1 kilogrammes of Colorado to Kano.
The crackdown extended to prescription drugs and other controlled substances across several states.
In Delta State, operations in Ughelli and Asaba resulted in the recovery of pentazocine injections, codeine syrup, tramadol, diazepam, flunitrazepam, popularly known as Hypnox, and MDMA, also called Molly. Some of the substances were concealed in music speakers.
Two suspects, Emeka Oji and Chukwuebuka Anedi, were arrested in connection with the seizures.
In Kano State, operatives raided a location in Sabon Gari and arrested 20-year-old Saidu Adamu with 785,000 capsules of pregabalin weighing 669.425 kilogrammes.
Another operation along the Zaria–Kano–Hadejia road resulted in the seizure of 1,700 diazepam tablets concealed inside loaves of bread. The drugs were allegedly being transported by 28-year-old Habibu Sabitu, who was arrested during the stop-and-search operation.
At Katako Market in Jos, Plateau State, operatives arrested 51-year-old Chinedu Uzor with 157,100 capsules of tramadol.
The agency also intensified operations against cannabis cultivation and distribution.
In Edo State, NDLEA operatives destroyed 4,832.56 kilogrammes of skunk cannabis cultivated on farms in Usen Forest, Igwe-Oke Forest and Ogboha Forest, covering parts of Ovia South-West, Owan East and Owan West Local Government Areas.
A 39-year-old suspect, Sunday Segun, was arrested during the operation on Friday, September 11.
In Ondo State, operatives acting on intelligence raided a residence along Oke-Iya, Ijoka Road, Akure, on Wednesday, September 9, recovering 186 kilogrammes of skunk concealed in the boot of a Toyota Avalon marked ABJ 917 FV.
The consignment was allegedly destined for Jos for onward distribution. A 58-year-old suspect, Paul Ogbuwala, was arrested.
In Kaduna State, NDLEA operatives arrested a female suspect, Hannah Michael, at Gonin Gora with 369.6 kilogrammes of cannabis.
Four suspects were also arrested at Ovom, Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, where operatives recovered 110 bags of cannabis weighing 876 kilogrammes.
Those arrested were 70-year-old Godwoman Gboriye, 44-year-old Motombo Silver, 39-year-old Pere Andrew and 43-year-old Keme Andrew.
The latest operations underscore the scale and geographical spread of the NDLEA’s ongoing campaign against illicit drug trafficking, with traffickers exploiting airports, motor parks, residential premises, road corridors, markets and remote cannabis farms to move and conceal narcotics.
The agency said its commands and formations also sustained its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation campaigns in schools, worship centres, workplaces and communities during the week.
Commending officers and personnel of the DOGI, MMIA, and the Ondo, Edo, Delta, Kaduna, Plateau, Bayelsa and Kano Commands, NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (retd.), urged them to sustain the agency’s balanced approach to drug control.
Marwa charged the operatives to continue dismantling the networks and supply routes used by drug cartels, including those operating through airports, seaports, land borders and the hinterland where cannabis is cultivated.
The NDLEA said the operations reaffirm its commitment to disrupting both domestic and international drug supply chains while complementing enforcement with sustained public awareness and prevention campaigns.
