Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a 62-year-old Lagos-based auto parts dealer, Nwabueze Nicholas Izueke, at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA), Kano, for attempting to smuggle cocaine to China.
Izueke was apprehended on Saturday, January 31, 2026, during the outward clearance of passengers travelling to China via Addis Ababa on Ethiopian Airlines flight ET940. A body scan revealed that the suspect had ingested illicit drugs, leading to his placement under excretion observation.
The NDLEA later recovered 95 jumbo-sized wraps of cocaine, weighing a total of 1.589 kilograms, from the suspect in seven excretions. In his statement, Izueke claimed he resorted to drug trafficking to raise funds to complete a house he is building in his hometown of Iwollo, Enugu State.
In a related development, NDLEA operatives in Abuja foiled an attempt to smuggle consignments of methamphetamine concealed in MP3 speakers from Enugu to Abuja and Kaduna. The operation, carried out on Friday, February 6, led to the interception of the drugs aboard a commercial bus.
A follow-up operation in Zuba, Federal Capital Territory (FCT), resulted in the arrest of Ebube Okeke, owner of one of the consignments containing 173 grams of methamphetamine.
Meanwhile, Evans Ugwu, Mohammed Eze Arinze and Friday Michael were arrested in Kaduna on Saturday, February 7, while attempting to collect a second consignment weighing 28 grams.
Also in the FCT, NDLEA officers recovered 627.7 kilograms of skunk, a strain of cannabis, from a makeshift warehouse at Fums Plaza, Kubwa.
In Taraba State, NDLEA operatives on Friday, February 6, intercepted a suspect, Yusuf Abubakar, 32, at the Dan-Anacha patrol point in Gassol Local Government Area. The suspect was conveying packs of Hollandia yoghurt from Lagos to Mubi, Adamawa State. A search revealed 1.8 kilograms of methamphetamine concealed inside some of the yoghurt packs.
In Oyo State, a Beninoise national, Shuaibu Abdulrahman, 29, was arrested on Thursday, February 5, at Ibudo-Igboho village, Sooro Kishi, with 149.6 kilograms of skunk hidden in rice shafts. In a separate operation in Ibadan, NDLEA officers arrested Adeniyi Adeola, also known as “Prince,” at Foko, Agbeni Market, on Wednesday, February 4. Recovered from his truck were 10,820 ampoules of pentazocine injection and 117,820 capsules of tramadol.
Also in Ibadan, NDLEA dismantled a ‘Colorado’ (synthetic cannabis) production facility in the Badeku area, arresting a drug kingpin, Jimoh Nurudeen, 40, and his accomplice, Ogundipe Yusuf, 27, on Saturday, February 7. Items recovered include eight litres of precursor chemicals, 14 grams of skunk, production paraphernalia, ₦7,408,400 in cash, and two vehicles—a Mercedes-Benz SUV and a Toyota Highlander.
In Kwara State, NDLEA operatives intercepted a fuel tanker transporting petrol from Lagos to Maiduguri on Saturday, February 7. A search of the vehicle led to the recovery of 395,400 capsules of tramadol concealed within the truck, while the driver was taken into custody.
Meanwhile, a couple, Izuchukwu Azubuike, 37, and Ifunaya Mmadueke, 32, were arrested in Umuaka, Njaba Local Government Area of Imo State, with 203 kilograms of skunk. In Ondo State, operatives recovered 420 kilograms of skunk from a bush at Ikun Akoko on Friday, February 6.
At the Marine Command in Badagry, Lagos State, NDLEA officers seized 31 wraps of cocaine concealed in a handbag from a suspect, Eze Nodebechi Austin, upon his arrival from Côte d’Ivoire by boat on Friday, February 6. Similarly, a suspect, Adekunle Oluwatosin Olajide, was arrested on Wednesday, February 4, at Lagos Island with 3.6 kilograms of Canadian Loud and Colorado.
In Enugu State, a drug dealer, Emeka Okeke, 37, was apprehended at his hideout in Asata, Ezeagu, where quantities of skunk, methamphetamine, cocaine, molly, and ₦457,700 in cash were recovered.
Meanwhile, NDLEA commands across the country continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation campaigns in schools, worship centres and communities nationwide.
Commending the officers involved in the operations, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), urged personnel to sustain professionalism and commitment in both drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction efforts.
