By Jemimah Wellington, JKNewsMedia Correspondent
MAJOR ANTI-narcotics action uncovered 70 parcels of cocaine ingeniously concealed inside cocoa butter body cream containers at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) confirmed that the consignment, bound for London in the United Kingdom (UK), was intercepted during a routine cargo inspection, triggering a series of arrests across Lagos.
According to the NDLEA, the cocaine parcels, weighing 3.60 kilograms, were discovered on 14 October 2025 during inspection of cargoes declared as personal effects on an Air Peace flight.
A cargo agent, identified as Lawal Mustapha Olakunle, who presented the consignment for airfreight, was immediately arrested.
Following two weeks of sustained investigation, the agency traced the illicit consignment to two principal suspects. On 18 October, operatives arrested Ogunmuyide Taiwo Deborah, a female healthcare worker, in a follow-up operation.
Subsequent intelligence led to the arrest of Mutiu Adebayo Adebiyi, Chief Executive Officer of Mutiu Adebiyi & Co, a travel agency, at his office located at 23 Ladoke Akintola Street, Ikeja GRA, Lagos, on 20 October.
The NDLEA stated that all suspects are assisting in further investigations into the international drug trafficking network responsible for the attempted export of the Class A substance.
Elsewhere, at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport (AIIA), Enugu, NDLEA officers intercepted Lemena Mark, a 35-year-old citizen of Lesotho, attempting to export 103.59 grams of methamphetamine concealed in a Diabeta herbs coffee tea pack to the Philippines on 22 October.
The arrest, executed before the suspect’s scheduled Ethiopian Airlines flight, led to the recovery of the illicit substance.
In Kwara State, operatives acting on credible intelligence intercepted a 100-litre water heater at Bode Saadu, Moro Local Government Area, concealing 21,950 capsules of Tramadol 250mg.
The suspect, Umar Abubakar, aged 40, was arrested on 21 October.
In Lagos, the agency’s ongoing offensive against illicit drug activities extended to nightlife venues. NDLEA operatives raided Proxy Night Club, situated at 7 Akin Adesola Street, Victoria Island, during the early hours of 26 October following intelligence of a drug party.
Over 100 suspects were apprehended, including the club’s owner, Mike Eze Nwalie Nwogu, popularly known as Pretty Mike. According to the NDLEA, officers had been embedded at the venue since 11.00pm on 25 October and executed the raid at 3.00am the following morning under standard operating procedures.
The agency recovered cartons of illicit substances, including Loud (a potent strain of cannabis) and laughing gas, from both party attendees and the club’s store.
In Taraba State, NDLEA officers at Dan-Anacha checkpoint arrested Auwal Musa, 26, and Salihu Bala, 22, on 21 October with 450,000 pills of Tramadol and Exol-5 hidden among building materials transported in a truck from Onitsha, Anambra State, en route to Mubi, Adamawa State.
Similarly, on 24 October, NDLEA operatives patrolling the Okene–Lokoja Highway in Kogi State seized 162.2 kilograms of skunk, a potent strain of cannabis, from a truck.
Another 128 kilograms of the same substance were recovered on 22 October from Abubakar Muhammad, 55, in Keffi, Nasarawa State.
The agency also reported the arrest of Oyonumoh Glory Effiong, a mother of two and a major distributor of Canadian and California Loud, both strong cannabis variants, in Lagos.
The NDLEA said she was apprehended on 17 October at her Lekki residence, where 500 grams of the illicit drugs were recovered. Effiong was identified as a key supplier to clients in Lekki, Ajah, Ikoyi, Victoria Island, and VGC.
Further operations in Lagos led to a raid on 23 October at Solomade Estate, Ikorodu, where NDLEA operatives recovered 275 litres of skuchies, a locally produced psychoactive cocktail made with blackcurrant drink, cannabis, and opioids.
The homeowner, Ogunyabo Adenigbigbe, was arrested.
In Abia State, operatives arrested a 75-year-old man, Echendu Onuoka, on 22 October at Ovum Village, Obingwa Local Government Area, with 4.7 kilograms of skunk.
A 60-year-old woman, Aukana John, was also arrested in the same LGA at Apanta Village with 225 grams of the substance.
The agency recorded another major seizure on 24 October at Yan Aya, Saminaka, in Lere LGA, Kaduna State, where Bashir Mohammed, 50, and Samini Ahmed Tijjani, 35, were arrested with 234.5 kilograms of skunk.
On the same day, Isah Usman, 50, and Salvation Okoler, 18, were apprehended along the Abuja–Kaduna Highway with 8,600 pills of Tramadol 225mg and Rohypnol.
A separate operation in Ondo State at Lot Camp, Ikun Akoko, resulted in the seizure of 150 kilograms of skunk.
At Seme border, Lagos, NDLEA officers arrested Jacob Ojugbele on 22 October at Ashipa area of Badagry with 55 kilograms of skunk, while Amusa Oluwabukola was caught at Itoga, Badagry, with 121.3 litres of skuchies.
In Zamfara State, NDLEA patrol operatives arrested Abubakar Ibrahim, 30, on 20 October along Gummi–Anka Road.
He was found in possession of an AK-47 rifle and 1,746 assorted rounds of ammunition for AK-47 and GPMG rifles while transporting them from Sokoto to Bagega Forest in Anka LGA.
The NDLEA has since handed both the suspect and the recovered arms to the relevant security agency for further investigation.
Meanwhile, the agency reported that its commands nationwide have sustained community-focused efforts under the War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) initiative.
In the past week, NDLEA officers conducted sensitisation campaigns across schools, religious institutions, and workplaces.
The outreach included educational lectures at Asabari Grammar School, Saki West LGA, Oyo State; Government Day Girls Secondary School, Birnin Kebbi, Kebbi State; St. Mark’s College, Nsude, Enugu State; Kusaki Secondary School, Gboko North, Benue State; Government Day Secondary School, Serti-Baruwa, Gashaka LGA, Taraba State; Police Children School 2, Port Harcourt, Rivers State; and Hajara Ahmad International School, Tudun Wada, Kano State.
While commending officers of MMIA, AIIA, Lagos, Kwara, Abia, Nasarawa, Kogi, Ondo, Anambra, Taraba, Kaduna, Seme, and Zamfara Commands for their recent successes, NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retired) urged personnel across the country to sustain the agency’s balanced approach to drug control.
According to Femi Babafemi, Director of Media and Advocacy at NDLEA Headquarters, the agency remains steadfast in its commitment to dismantling drug networks while intensifying public awareness campaigns to prevent abuse.
The NDLEA reaffirmed that ongoing operations are part of its nationwide strategy to disrupt the production, distribution, and consumption of illicit substances while reinforcing collaboration with international partners to combat transnational drug trafficking.
