By Jemimah Wellington, JKNewsMedia Correspondent
MONTHS OF surveillance culminated in the arrest of a wanted drug baron, 40-year-old Yussuf Abayomi Azeez, by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at Murtala Mohammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos, while he attempted to board a flight to Saudi Arabia for Umrah.
The NDLEA stated that Azeez, who had previously been charged with drug offences in the United Kingdom but fled the country after jumping bail, had established a large clandestine laboratory for the production of synthetic drugs, including Colorado, in the Lekki area of Lagos.
The arrest, which took place at about 6:30 a.m. on Thursday, 6 November 2025, followed extensive intelligence operations conducted by the NDLEA Special Operations Unit. Upon apprehension, Azeez was taken to his illicit production site located at 17 Vincent Eku Street, Ogombo, Lekki, which had been under surveillance prior to his capture. He was arrested alongside another suspect, 43-year-old Abideen Kekere-Ekun.
According to the Agency, the operation led to the dismantling of the entire facility by officers from the Directorate of Forensic and Chemical Monitoring. The raid uncovered large quantities of chemicals, laboratory equipment, and synthetic drugs, including Colorado, weighing a total of 148.3 kilogrammes.
The NDLEA said the seizure formed part of a broader series of coordinated enforcement actions carried out in several states within the same week.
In Lagos, a joint examination by NDLEA operatives, the Nigeria Customs Service, and other security agencies at the Sifax bonded terminal in Okota on Friday, 7 November, resulted in the discovery of 105.5 kilogrammes of Molly, a designer drug, along with 500 grammes of methamphetamine concealed in a shipment.
In Niger State, NDLEA officers intercepted 35-year-old Ibrahim Mohammed along the Kainji–Wawa road on Thursday, 6 November, while transporting 87,000 pills of tramadol and 72 kilogrammes of skunk in a Volvo truck marked GRZ 872 XA.
Similarly, along the Zaki-Biam–Wukari road on Monday, 3 November, operatives intercepted a Toyota Corolla marked GAN 102 AR carrying 34,520 capsules of tramadol hidden in secret compartments.
The driver, 25-year-old Aliyu Samaila, was arrested, and investigations revealed that the consignment was loaded from Onitsha, Anambra State, en route to Cameroon.
In a separate operation in Taraba State, NDLEA operatives arrested 28-year-old Felix Tanko Chinedu on Thursday, 6 November, at Kasuwabera ATC in Ardo Kola Local Government Area with 15,020 capsules of tramadol.
Kogi State also recorded major seizures during the week. Officers on patrol along the Okene–Lokoja highway on Wednesday, 5 November, intercepted a 7.6-kilogramme consignment of Loud, a potent strain of cannabis.
A follow-up operation in Abuja led to the arrest of 40-year-old Chukwunonso Anieze, the owner of the shipment, and the recovery of an additional 175,000 pills of opioids from another consignment at the same location.
In a related operation, three suspects—39-year-old Olayide Oyidiran, 28-year-old Abdulsalam Abdulsalam, and 39-year-old Opeyemi Tijjani, were arrested at the Abuja–Kaduna tollgate on Wednesday, 5 November, while conveying 769 kilogrammes of skunk in a truck marked TRE 897 BE.
The illicit cargo was reportedly loaded in Lagos and was being transported to Kano via Owo, Ondo State.
The NDLEA also reported the arrest of elderly suspects involved in the cultivation and distribution of cannabis. In Edo State, 73-year-old James Ugbedo was apprehended on Friday, 7 November, at a cannabis plantation located in Igbeshi forest, Imiakebo,
Etsako East Local Government Area. Operatives destroyed 1,459.75 kilogrammes of skunk at the scene and evacuated 5.6 kilogrammes for further investigation.
In Bayelsa State, a 70-year-old woman, Mrs Comfort Odudu, was arrested at Onopa, Yenagoa, on Tuesday, 4 November, with 5 kilogrammes of skunk in her possession.
The Agency added that, across its commands nationwide, officers continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation activities targeting schools, religious institutions, workplaces, and communities.
These programmes, held within the past week, included lectures at Transfiguration Seminary Secondary School, Abakaliki, Ebonyi State; Day Secondary School, Sabonkasuwa Kontagora, Niger State; Immanuel College High School (Senior), Ibadan, Oyo State; Government Girls Secondary School, Ilelah, Sokoto State; and Government Day Secondary School, Namtari, Adamawa State.
A statement signed by Femi Babafemi, Director, Media and Advocacy, NDLEA Headquarters on Sunday, 9 November 2025, notes that the NDLEA also engaged leaders and members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) in Birnin Kebbi, Kebbi State, as part of the nationwide campaign.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retired), commended officers and men from the Special Operations Unit, Directorate of Forensic and Chemical Monitoring, Tincan Command, and state commands in Edo, Taraba, Kaduna, Kogi, Niger, and Bayelsa for the successful operations.
Marwa urged personnel across the country to sustain the balanced approach of the Agency in drug control, combining law enforcement with public education and rehabilitation.
He said, “The dismantling of yet another clandestine laboratory for the production of Colorado and other dangerous synthetic substances and the arrest of the kingpin behind it in Lekki, coming barely a week after similar actions were taken against another cartel in Ajao Estate, Lagos, shows that these are no doubt the first in the series of what will be many strikes against merchants of death who prey on the weak in our communities.”
“Let it be known to those still hiding in the dark that the NDLEA, supported by our local and international law enforcement partners, will continue to hunt them and bring them to justice,” he added.
The NDLEA reaffirmed its commitment to intensify counter-narcotics operations nationwide and sustain its drive to dismantle networks involved in the manufacture, trafficking, and distribution of illicit substances.
