The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intensified its nationwide offensive against illicit drug trafficking, intercepting a China-bound businesswoman with 7.5 kilograms of cocaine at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, while also seizing a massive 4,959-kilogram consignment of Canadian Loud cannabis valued at over N12.3 billion at the Apapa Port.
According to an official signed statement by the Director, Media and Advocacy, NDLEA, Femi Babafemi, the 38-year-old suspect, Iwebema Ogechi Peace, was arrested on Sunday, 21 June 2026, at the departure hall of Terminal 2 of the Lagos airport while attempting to board a Qatar Airways flight to Beijing, China.
Babafemi disclosed that intelligence-led surveillance led to the discovery of four large parcels of cocaine weighing a total of 7.5 kilograms concealed in a professionally fabricated false bottom of her luggage. The suspect reportedly claimed she regularly travelled to China to purchase goods for resale in Nigeria.
In another major operation, NDLEA operatives, working alongside officers of the Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies, intercepted a 40-foot container loaded with 195 sacks of Canadian Loud, a potent strain of cannabis, during a joint examination at the Apapa Port Complex in Lagos on Wednesday, 23 June 2026.
The agency said the recovered illicit consignment weighed 4,959 kilograms and has an estimated street value of N12.397 billion. Investigations revealed that the shipment was tracked for more than four weeks after departing Toronto, Canada, before transiting through Montreal and Morocco en route to Nigeria.
The statement further revealed that operatives of the NDLEA in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), in collaboration with their counterparts in Anambra State, dismantled a criminal syndicate that secretly plants illicit drugs in the luggage of unsuspecting interstate passengers travelling through motor parks.
The operation began after officers intercepted a Sienna bus travelling from Nnewi, Anambra State, at Abaji in the FCT on 20 June 2026, where a waybill package containing 467.7 grams of methamphetamine was discovered concealed inside a sack of clothing. A series of follow-up operations led to the arrest of the alleged receiver, Mrs Gloria Peter, who denied ownership of the package. Further investigations resulted in the arrest of bus loaders in Nnewi, the driver, Abdurrazak Isah, and the alleged owner of the illicit consignment, Onyebuchi Victor Okoye.
In Lagos, operatives of a Special Operations Unit arrested 57-year-old Ikechukwu Uwakwe at the Iddo Motor Park on 27 June while attempting to transport 209.5 kilograms of Scottish Loud cannabis to Enugu State.
The agency also intercepted a truck transporting illicit drugs from Togo through the Benin Republic, leading to the arrest of two Beninese nationals, Hossou Tito Julien, 30, and Mancellim Dossou, 19, alongside a Nigerian, Jackson ThankGod.
A search of the truck uncovered 558,900 pills of Tramadol 250mg concealed in a specially fabricated compartment within the vehicle.
In a separate operation along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, NDLEA operatives arrested Lucky Abonga and Osas Azamobo while transporting 118 kilograms of skunk concealed among legitimate goods in a truck travelling from Lagos to Onitsha, Anambra State.
Similarly, two women, Helen Ese Idiji, 40, and Rashidat Sa’adullah, 53, were apprehended at Amukoko in Lagos with 28.8 kilograms of skunk. Investigations indicated that Helen allegedly used Rashidat’s residence as a storage point before distributing the illicit drugs to customers.
Beyond enforcement operations, the agency sustained its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) campaign through sensitisation programmes held in schools and communities across Yobe, Lagos, Kano, Kogi and Enugu states as part of efforts to discourage drug abuse among young Nigerians.
Commending officers of the MMIA, Special Operations Units, Apapa, FCT, Anambra and Lagos Commands for the successful operations, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), praised their commitment to reducing drug supply while sustaining public enlightenment campaigns, urging them to remain resolute in the fight against drug trafficking and abuse nationwide.
