NDLEA arrests Lagos businessman at Kano airport for ingesting 95 cocaine wraps

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a Lagos-based businessman, Nwabueze Nicholas Izueke, for attempting to traffic 1.589 kilograms of cocaine by swallowing 95 wraps of the drug.

The suspect was apprehended at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA), Kano, during outward passenger clearance, according to a statement issued by the agency’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi.

NDLEA said the 62-year-old was intercepted on Saturday, January 31, 2026, while preparing to travel to China via Addis Ababa on Ethiopian Airlines flight ET940. A routine body scan reportedly returned a positive result for ingested illicit substances, after which he was placed under excretion observation.

“Under observation, the suspect expelled 95 jumbo-sized wraps of cocaine in seven separate excretions, confirming the presence of the class A drug concealed in his stomach,” the agency stated.

While in custody, Izueke reportedly told investigators that he is into clothing and auto spare parts business in Lagos, adding that he resorted to drug trafficking to raise funds to complete a country home he is building in his village, Iwollo, Enugu State.

The arrest, NDLEA said, is part of a broader nationwide crackdown on drug trafficking and abuse, which has led to multiple seizures and arrests across several states.

In the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), operatives recovered 627.7 kilograms of skunk, a potent strain of cannabis, from a makeshift warehouse in Kubwa. Attempts to smuggle methamphetamine hidden inside MP3 speakers from Enugu to Abuja and Kaduna were also foiled.

In Taraba State, intelligence-led patrols intercepted 1.8 kilograms of methamphetamine concealed in packs of yoghurt at a checkpoint on a cargo bound for Adamawa State.

Other operations in Oyo, Kwara, Imo, Ondo and Lagos states led to the arrest of additional suspects and the seizure of cannabis, tramadol, pentazocine injections, and cocaine, including drugs concealed in a handbag from a passenger who arrived by boat from Côte d’Ivoire.

In Ibadan, NDLEA officers also arrested a suspected drug kingpin operating a facility producing synthetic cannabis known as Colorado, recovering precursor chemicals, skunk, large sums of cash and two vehicles.

In Kwara State, nearly 400,000 capsules of tramadol were intercepted in a fuel tanker heading to Maiduguri, while in Imo State a couple was arrested with 203 kilograms of skunk. In Ondo State, 420 kilograms of the same substance were recovered in a bush at Ikun Akoko.

Across Lagos, other suspects were detained with 31 wraps of cocaine hidden in a handbag, while 3.6 kilograms of Canadian Loud and Colorado were seized on Lagos Island.

NDLEA added that it has sustained its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation campaigns in schools, worship centres, workplaces and communities nationwide to deepen public awareness of the dangers of drug trafficking and abuse.