By Duro Obalola, JKNewsMedia Intern
OPERATIVES OF the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have intercepted consignments of illicit drugs concealed in frozen snails, electrical bulbs, and female clothes at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) and a courier company in Lagos.
The substances were destined for the United States (U.S.), United Kingdom (UK), and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
According to a statement by the NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, at least two suspects linked to the attempted exports have been taken into custody.
One of them, a cargo agent identified as Boladale Riliwan, was arrested on 7 October 2025 after NDLEA officers discovered 15 parcels of skunk, a strain of cannabis, concealed in 10 rechargeable electrical bulbs presented for airfreight to the DRC at the Lagos airport export shed.
Another suspect, Olawale Oyebola Hakeemot, a 48-year-old UK-based Public Health Assistant, was arrested on Sunday 12 October at the departure hall of Terminal 2 of the MMIA, Ikeja.
She was found with 2,300 tramadol pills (225mg) hidden in frozen snails while heading to Manchester, United Kingdom, on a Qatar Airways flight.
The agency also thwarted an attempt by another syndicate to export 810 pills of bromazepam hidden in female clothes destined for the United States through a courier company in Lagos on Thursday 16 October.
In a related operation in Adamawa State, NDLEA officers intercepted a suspect, Bello Buba, at a checkpoint in Namtari, Yola South Local Government Area, with 38,270 tramadol pills concealed in the spare tyre, boot, and door compartments of a Honda Civic he drove from Benin Republic to Nigeria.
Elsewhere, NDLEA operatives destroyed 53,250 kilograms of skunk on a 21.3-hectare cannabis farm in Ilawe Ekiti, Ekiti State, while another 1,140kg of the same substance was recovered in a two-day operation between 12 and 13 October.
Arrested suspects include Matthew Emmanuel (26), James Moses (27), and Israel Samuel (20).
A similar operation in Ondo State led to the destruction of 17,400kg of skunk cultivated on 6.96 hectares of farmland within the Aponmu Forest Reserve, Akure.
In Oyo State, NDLEA operatives arrested Aliyu Muhammed (50), Babarinde Segun (32), Ogunbiyi Sanjo (30), and Ajani Oluro (30) with 596kg of skunk at Apata-Ako, Igboora, while Jacob Afolabi (30) and Salako Oluwatobi (25) were apprehended with 273kg of the same substance at Odo-Oyan, Igangan.
In Ogun State, Joseph Andrew was arrested with 88kg of skunk at Ona-Imeko, while Festus Udoh (42) was caught with 13,000 opioid pills along the Onitsha–Owerri Road, Imo State.
NDLEA also recovered 74.5kg of skunk from the store of Joseph Chukwujamaa at Umuogbo-Agu village, Enugu State.
In Lagos, NDLEA operatives seized 11 bags of skunk weighing 117kg from a suspect, Ramoni Olukowi, in Mushin on 18 October.
Additionally, a joint examination of a container earlier watch-listed by the agency led to the interception of 80,000 bottles of codeine-based syrup imported from India at the Apapa Port on 14 October.
The agency further reported ongoing War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation activities in schools, worship centres, workplaces, and communities across the country. Recent advocacy programmes were held in Ekiti, Katsina, Rivers, Jigawa, Kano, Edo, Enugu, and Ogun states.
While commending officers across the affected commands for their vigilance and arrests, NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), urged them to sustain the agency’s balanced approach in the fight against drug trafficking and abuse.
