By Ajibola Olaide, JKNewsMedia Reporter
A MAJOR international cocaine trafficking cartel that used Nigeria as a transit hub for moving illicit drugs to the United Kingdom (UK), other parts of Europe and Asia has been dismantled, with its alleged Nigerian arrowhead arrested while attempting to flee the country.
JKNewsMedia.com reports that the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) said the operation led to the interception of 184.50 kilograms of cocaine concealed for export through a courier logistics channel in Lagos, with the cartel hoping to realise as much as ₦39 billion from the consignment through its international distribution network.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), disclosed the operation while addressing journalists in Lagos on Tuesday, describing it as one of the Agency’s most significant narcotics investigations in recent times and the largest cocaine seizure in a courier company in Nigeria.
Marwa said he immediately ordered the constitution of a Special Investigation Team to trace the entire network behind the shipment, from the couriers to the alleged masterminds.
Working with the management of the courier company involved, NDLEA operatives traced a network of intermediary companies and individuals used to process the consignment, leading to the arrest of two key suspects among several others.
One of the suspects, Lawal Mujab Kehinde, a staff member of the logistics firm through which the cocaine was processed, allegedly had a direct and sustained relationship with the cartel’s Nigerian coordinator.
Investigations also established that Kehinde packaged and processed consignments for the syndicate, routing them to the United Kingdom, other parts of Europe and Asia, while receiving cash payments.
The second suspect, Afolabi Kazeem Michael, popularly known online as KC Luxury, was identified by investigators as the Nigerian arrowhead of the cartel.
The NDLEA said Afolabi, who presented himself on social media as an influencer and businessman dealing in gold, jewellery and luxury goods, allegedly used his public image to conceal a criminal enterprise that moved cocaine from South America through Nigeria to the United Kingdom, other parts of Europe and Asia.
Marwa said Afolabi was arrested on the night of 13 August 2026 after credible intelligence indicated that he intended to leave Nigeria on a business-class flight to Paris.
“Our operatives moved decisively and apprehended him at the boarding gate of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, just as he attempted to escape the reach of the law,” Marwa said.
The NDLEA chief said the suspect had €7,750, £2,800 and ₦100,000 in cash, as well as expensive jewellery, when he was arrested.
A subsequent search of his luxury apartment on Banana Island, Ikoyi, led to the recovery of exotic vehicles.
Marwa said investigations showed that the cartel used false identities to conceal the true consignor of its shipments, relied on financial facilitators who moved billions of naira on its behalf and maintained active criminal contacts in the United Kingdom.
Some of those contacts have since been arrested by British authorities in connection with the same syndicate, he said.
He linked the operation to other recent actions against transnational drug networks, including the dismantling of the Switzerland-based Simon Amadi drug cartel, which laundered proceeds worth millions of dollars through dark web marketplaces, and the takedown of two Nigerian-Mexican methamphetamine syndicates that operated clandestine laboratories in forests in Ogun and Oyo States.
“These operations send an unmistakable signal that this Agency’s reach extends into the ports, the forests, the luxury apartments, and the departure lounges alike, and that no sanctuary exists anywhere in Nigeria for those who traffic in poison,” Marwa said.
He said the Agency had observed a shift by drug trafficking organisations away from seaports and airports, where scrutiny had intensified, towards courier and logistics companies.
“The dismantling of this cartel, from the interception of the consignment at a courier logistics channel right through to the arrest of its Nigerian arrowhead, is a clear demonstration that this Agency has both the capacity and the capability to fish out traffickers wherever they choose to hide,” he said.
Marwa said the operation also marked a proud moment for international cooperation, citing the near-simultaneous arrests of cartel members in Nigeria and the United Kingdom.
He commended the Agency’s international partners and the Special Investigation Team, coordinated by the Director of Operations and General Investigation, for their diligence and professionalism in unravelling the syndicate.
“To those who believe they can hide behind luxury brands, glamorous lifestyles, and social media personas while trafficking poison into our communities and across our borders, this Agency will find you,” Marwa said.
He reassured Nigerians of the NDLEA’s continued commitment to protecting the country’s youth and communities and ensuring that Nigeria is not used as a conduit for trafficking narcotics to any part of the world.
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