By Nkechi Eze
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has delivered a series of high-profile blows to drug trafficking networks across Nigeria, seizing massive consignments of cocaine, skunk, loud, pentazocine injections and tramadol in coordinated operations across multiple states last week. The enforcement drive also saw the arrest of a Brazil-based Nigerian businessman caught smuggling cocaine internally, highlighting the sophistication and audacity of modern drug traffickers.
At the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja-Lagos, NDLEA operatives intercepted 47-year-old Uche Franklin Onyekwere, a Nigerian businessman returning from Brazil, after intelligence indicated he was carrying illicit substances. Full-body scanning revealed that Onyekwere had concealed cocaine in his private parts and the soles of his footwear. A subsequent strip search recovered three large wraps totaling 1.6 kilograms of cocaine. During interrogation, the suspect confessed that he purchased the drugs in Brazil to resell in Nigeria, intending to fund his business expansion and the naming ceremony of his newborn child.
Meanwhile, at Lagos’ Tincan seaport, operatives uncovered 1,183 kilograms of Canadian Loud hidden inside two vehicles, a Hyundai SUV and a Toyota Matrix during a joint inspection of imported containers. The seizure reflects the NDLEA’s ongoing commitment to intercept large-scale consignments of narcotics entering the country via commercial ports.
Across the nation, similar operations yielded significant results. In Niger State, a truck carrying 2,735 kilograms of skunk and 1 kilogram of synthetic cannabis (Colos) was intercepted on the Dei-Dei Abuja expressway, with three suspects arrested. Edo State witnessed the seizure of 792 kilograms of skunk hidden inside charcoal bags and the destruction of 4,063.675 kilograms of skunk on a 1.6-hectare cannabis farm in Ilushi, where four suspects were arrested.
Anambra State also recorded a major bust when NDLEA operatives discovered 345.2 kilograms of skunk concealed inside cement bags at Upper Iweka, Onitsha. In Ondo State, 473 kilograms of skunk were seized, while Kano State authorities recovered 12,500 ampoules of pentazocine and over 4,390 tramadol pills from multiple suspects. Additional seizures included 15.5 kilograms of skunk intercepted in Lagos destined for Onitsha, and 3.5 kilograms recovered from luggage arriving from Cotonou at Seme Border, Badagry.
NDLEA officers continued proactive drug awareness campaigns under the agency’s War Against Drug Abuse (WADA), engaging students and communities nationwide through sensitisation lectures in schools, places of worship, workplaces, and local communities across Yobe, Abia, Enugu, Lagos, Katsina, Oyo, and other states.
Chairman and CEO of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended the operatives for their professionalism and dedication, urging them to maintain a balanced approach combining drug supply reduction with demand reduction efforts. He emphasized that the ongoing seizures and arrests demonstrate the agency’s unwavering commitment to dismantling drug networks and safeguarding public health and security across Nigeria.
The week’s operations underscore the NDLEA’s growing operational capacity, intelligence-led enforcement, and proactive approach in combating both local and international drug trafficking networks, reinforcing Nigeria’s position in the global fight against illicit narcotics.
