By Nkechi Eze
A 43-year-old female make-up artist, Adekoya Adebukonla Mary, who claimed she was traveling to India for fibroid surgery, has been arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos, after 2.2 kilograms of cocaine were discovered factory-fitted in the walls of her suitcase.
According to a statement signed by the agency’s spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, the suspect was intercepted on Monday, 16th June 2025, based on credible intelligence. NDLEA officers had placed her under surveillance and allowed her to check in her luggage before arresting her at the point of boarding her Qatar Airways flight to India via Doha. Upon thorough examination of her suitcase, two large parcels of cocaine weighing 2.2kg were discovered carefully concealed within its lining. During interrogation, Adekoya confessed that she was traveling not for medical reasons, but for financial gain, having been recruited and sponsored by a drug baron currently on the run. The suspect, identified as Akeem Ayinde Adekanbi, reportedly resides in the Igbe Laara area of Igbogbo, Ikorodu, Lagos State, and owns Rockford Hotel in the Sango axis of Ogun State.
In a series of other operations across the country, NDLEA operatives from the Directorate of Operation and General Investigation intercepted illicit drug shipments at courier companies in Lagos. On Thursday, 19th June, officers intercepted a consignment of sewn female dresses stuffed with 1.3 kilograms of Loud, a potent strain of cannabis, en route to Bahrain. The day before, on Wednesday, 18th June, a shipment of cloth hangers containing 850 grams of cocaine destined for Australia was also uncovered.
In Bauchi State, a combined operation led to the arrest of two suspects, Ibrahim Galadima, 37, and Ibrahim Muhammed, 28, along the Bauchi-Darazo road. The suspects were found in possession of 1,013,000 pills of opioids, including tramadol, diazepam, and exol-5. In another operation along the Kaduna-Zaria expressway on Tuesday, 17th June, a suspect, Bishir Isyaku, 38, was caught transporting 14.2 kilograms of skunk hidden in two sacks of charcoal along with seven cartons of rubber solution weighing 198 kilograms.
Further enforcement activities in the Federal Capital Territory on Wednesday, 18th June, led to the arrest of Murtala Adamu, Ahmed Isma’il, and four others during coordinated raids at Karu Abattoir and the Torabora areas of Abuja. Officers recovered 6.9 kilograms of skunk and 59 grams of methamphetamine from the suspects. In Kano State, NDLEA personnel patrolling along the Zaria-Kano road on Thursday, 19th June, arrested Umar Hamisu, 19, and Dahiru Abdullahi, 32, with 56.2 kilograms of skunk. That same day, another suspect, Obiwuru Henry, 27, was caught along Jaba road in Fagge Local Government Area with 23,720 capsules of tramadol and 1,400 ampoules of pentazocine. Additional arrests were made on Saturday, 21st June, when Abubakar Modu, 60, was nabbed with 36.6 kilograms of skunk, and Abdulkadir Muhammed, 28, with 32 kilograms of the same substance, both along the Zaria-Kano axis.
In Kwara State, a 22-year-old student of the Kwara State Polytechnic, Olotin Nifemi, was arrested on Thursday, 19th June, at her residence along Kwara Poly Road in Ilorin. The young woman, known for supplying illicit drugs to other students, was found in possession of one kilogram of skunk.
A major blow was also dealt to cannabis cultivation in Edo State, where NDLEA operatives destroyed a total of 4,226.11 kilograms of skunk at Ugbada Camp in the Uzebba forest of Owan West Local Government Area. During the raid on Friday, 20th June, a suspect, Albert Shamaki, 33, was arrested. A separate operation on Thursday, 19th June, in Emado community, Esan West LGA, led to the arrest of a female suspect, Esther Abumere, 28, at a supermarket known as Big Jamaya, where assorted illicit drugs including Colorado, Loud, Molly, Tramadol, and other opioids were recovered. At Idumeka in Igueben, another suspect, Eko Gift, 38, was apprehended at her provision shop with 1.143 kilograms of skunk.
In a continuing push under the War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) social advocacy initiative, NDLEA carried out sensitization programs across the country. These included lectures delivered to students and staff at Government Day Arabic Secondary School in Guri, Jigawa State; Government College, Lafia, Nasarawa State; Atodo Secondary School, Ankpa, Kogi State; Natsugunne Junior Secondary School, Jabba, Kano State; and Shallom Academy, Ibagwa, Enugu State. In Osun State, NDLEA officers paid a WADA advocacy visit to the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, at his palace in Ile Ife.
Commending the efforts of the agency’s officers and commands across MMIA, DOGI, Bauchi, Kaduna, Kano, Kwara, Edo, and the FCT, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), praised their dedication and success. He emphasized that the agency remains focused on achieving a balanced strategy between drug supply reduction and demand reduction, affirming that these coordinated efforts are crucial to securing communities and safeguarding future generations.
