The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has recorded a major breakthrough in its intensified war against drug trafficking, dismantling six criminal syndicates, arresting nine suspected drug kingpins, and seizing large quantities of illicit substances in a sweeping series of intelligence-led operations across the country.
NDLEA spokesman, Femi Babafemi, who disclosed the development in a detailed statement on Sunday, said the operations were part of a coordinated nationwide offensive targeting drug networks ahead of the festive season — a period the agency says traffickers often exploit to increase their activities.
According to Babafemi, one of the operations saw NDLEA operatives arrest two members of a major drug trafficking organisation in Onitsha, Anambra State, on Tuesday, 18 November 2025. The suspects — 30-year-old electrical appliances dealer Ebulue Lotanwa Uzochukwu and 51-year-old South Africa returnee Christopher Michael Ndibuisi — were apprehended after they turned up at a logistics company to collect a shipment containing 5.40kg of methamphetamine, 10.70kg of “Loud” (a potent strain of cannabis), and 16 grams of cocaine. The illicit consignment had arrived four days earlier at the import shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos, via a Tag Angola flight from South Africa on 13 November 2025 with airway bill number 118-12882973. NDLEA officers, acting on credible intelligence, immediately seized the cargo upon arrival. A planned sting operation later led operatives to the recipients in Onitsha, resulting in their arrest.
In another operation at the Lagos airport on Thursday, 20 November, NDLEA operatives intercepted a brake servo automobile part ingeniously modified to conceal 48 pellets and a block of cocaine weighing 2.30kg. The agency arrested a freight agent, Ameh Solomon, who presented the consignment for export to Gabon. A follow-up operation at the ASMPDA market in the Trade Fair Complex, Ojo, Lagos, led to the arrest of an auto parts dealer, Nwafor Tochukwu Boniface, linked to the smuggling attempt.
Across the states, similar major seizures were recorded. In Kogi State, operatives intercepted a trailer laden with 4,700kg of skunk on Monday, 17 November, in Kabba. Three suspects — Solomon Dauda, Friday Garba, and Daniel Danladi — who were escorting the drugs, were arrested. A subsequent operation in Jos, Plateau State, on Friday, 21 November, led to the arrest of the alleged kingpin behind the massive shipment, Marcus Danladi Dan Mangu.
In Cross River State, NDLEA officers on Wednesday, 19 November, stormed a warehouse at 13 Park Road in Ugep, Yakurr LGA, where they arrested a couple — 55-year-old Onun Okoi Okpotum and his wife, 52-year-old Itam Okoi Okpotum. A total of 362 jumbo bags of skunk weighing 4,706kg were recovered from the property.
In Edo State, two women — 19-year-old Praise Nwogu and 25-year-old Ebong Emem Oghosa — who specialise in producing and selling drug-laced brownies were arrested in Benin City on Saturday, 22 November. Nwogu was found with 12 plates and a cup of drug-laced brownies, while Oghosa was caught with 76 grams of skunk, 1.5 grams of Colorado and additional brownies.
Further operations across the country yielded more arrests and seizures. In Akoko Edo LGA of Edo State, a Tuesday, 18 November raid in Ososo village led to the arrest of 35-year-old Shedrack Aminu and the recovery of 59kg of skunk. Along the Enugu–Onitsha highway on Wednesday, 19 November, operatives intercepted 24-year-old Chinoso Emmanuel Monday with 10.1kg of skunk, 105,600 tramadol pills (100mg, 225mg and 250mg), 700 ampoules of pentazocine injection, and 3,000 rounds of live ammunition. In Kebbi State, 13,155 bottles of codeine-based syrup were evacuated from a warehouse in Dole-Kaina, Dandi LGA. A separate interception led to the arrest of 23-year-old Umar Adamu, who was found with 12,548 opioid pills hidden inside paracetamol containers and allegedly destined for a Boko Haram enclave in the Muna general area of Borno State.
On the Abaji–Abuja Expressway, two suspects — 40-year-old Anthony Mercy and 39-year-old Sunday Augustine — were arrested on Monday, 17 November, with 430.5kg of drugs. In Niger State, 47-year-old Samson Dafe was apprehended at Dikko junction, Tafa LGA, on Tuesday, 18 November, with 85,100 opioid pills and 5,456 bottles of codeine syrup concealed inside a commercial vehicle. In Shiroro LGA of Niger State, officers raided the home of a suspect, Sani Mohammed, recovering 437 blocks of compressed skunk weighing 471.8kg.
In Lagos, NDLEA arrested Usman Ayoola Adegoke in connection with 139 pouches of Canadian Loud (71kg) recovered from an apartment in Lekki. Also in Lekki, a woman identified as Oluchi Celestine was arrested on Tuesday, 18 November, with 2.6kg of Colorado packaged in branded containers and hidden inside flight boarding cards. On Monday, 17 November, operatives working with military personnel raided the notorious Peti drug enclave on Lagos Island, recovering 385kg of skunk, Loud and Colorado and arresting two suspects. At Maza-Maza motor park, Lagos, officers seized 163,200 tramadol capsules (225mg) in another operation.
Meanwhile, NDLEA formations nationwide continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation programmes, delivering lectures to students, religious groups and community members in Oyo, Lagos, Katsina, Niger, Sokoto, Enugu and Ogun States.
Commending the officers and men involved in the extensive operations, NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd), urged them to sustain the pressure on drug cartels. He warned that traffickers often intensify their activities during the festive season and vowed that the agency would not allow them exploit the period.
“The coming weeks present both an opportunity and a challenge. Drug cartels may attempt to increase their illegal activities, seeking to profit during the busy holiday period. We must not, and we will not, let down our guard,” Marwa said, reaffirming the agency’s resolve to maintain a relentless and intelligence-driven crackdown on drug trafficking nationwide.
