Drug Trafficking Network Disrupted as NDLEA Makes Major Seizures at Airports, Border Points Nationwide

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has recorded a series of coordinated drug interceptions and arrests across airports, border communities, and courier channels nationwide, leading to the seizure of large quantities of illicit substances and the detention of multiple suspects.

At the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, operatives on Wednesday, May 20, arrested a suspect, Onyeka Emeka, during inward clearance of passengers on an Ethiopian Airlines flight from Sierra Leone via Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. He was subsequently placed under observation and expelled 185.36 grammes of cocaine.

At the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, on Wednesday, May 21, a 29-year-old building engineer, Babatunde Afekhide, was arrested while attempting to board an Ethiopian Airlines flight to Milan, Italy, via Addis Ababa. A search of his luggage uncovered 10,280 pills of Tramadol and related opioids, including Tramaking 225mg, Tramadol 200mg, and Tapentadol 250mg, concealed in foil paper and hidden inside a carton.

In Lagos, NDLEA operatives intercepted multiple illicit drug consignments at a courier company. The seizures included 1,174 pills of MDMA (Ecstasy) concealed in a bicycle luggage carrier bound for the Netherlands, 66 pills of Tramadol hidden in a soap container destined for the United States, and 18 tablets of Tramadol concealed in a body cream container heading to the United Kingdom.

In Edo State, acting on intelligence, operatives raided the Igwe community in Owan East Local Government Area, recovering 59 jumbo bags of skunk weighing 489kg, alongside 9kg of cannabis seeds.

Similarly, in Kano State, a 30-year-old suspect, Isah Sani, was arrested along the Zaria-Kano Road with 196,000 pills of Exol-5.

At the Seme border area in Badagry, Lagos State, officers recovered 59kg of skunk from a warehouse in Mowo on Tuesday, May 19.

In Ekiti State, operatives on Saturday, May 23, raided a warehouse at Ikole-Ekiti, where 1,116kg of skunk was recovered. A 54-year-old suspect, Ogundana Adebayo Julius, was arrested in connection with the seizure.

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brig.-Gen. Mohammed Marwa (retd.), commended officers across the MMIA, NAIA, AIIA, Edo, Ekiti, Seme, and Kano commands, as well as the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation (DOGI), for their efforts. He praised their continued balance of drug supply reduction operations with War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation campaigns, urging sustained operational vigilance.