In a sweeping nationwide crackdown on drug trafficking, operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a Chinese businessman, Liang Tak You, and an 80-year-old woman, Mrs. Grace Ekpeme, alongside several others, with large consignments of illicit drugs concealed in food items and vehicles across multiple states.
Liang, a naturalized Malaysian based in China, was intercepted at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, on Friday, July 25, 2025, after arriving from Bangkok via Dubai on an Emirates flight. Acting on intelligence, NDLEA operatives tracked him from his departure point, allowing him to pass through regular protocols before arresting him with 50 parcels of Loud cannabis weighing 26.10kg stashed in two suitcases.
In Cross River State, Mrs. Grace Ekpeme was nabbed at Edet-Nsa Street, Base Site, Calabar South, in the early hours of Saturday, July 26, with over 3kg of skunk, following reports of her involvement in drug peddling.
Earlier in Lagos, on Wednesday, July 23, NDLEA officers apprehended Chidi Agbafo on the Epe-Ajah Expressway while transporting 21.7kg of Colorado—some hidden in moimoi cooking sachets—alongside 3.8 litres of codeine syrup destined for Warri and Oghara, Delta State.
Also in Lagos, NDLEA operatives at the Apapa Seaport recovered 101kg of Canadian Loud, concealed in 202 tins of food labeled “Bean Salad Mix” and hidden inside two Toyota Sienna buses within a container from Canada. The seizure was made during a joint operation with Customs and other security agencies on Friday, July 25.
Other major arrests and seizures include:
- Abuja-Kaduna Highway: 71,000 pills of tramadol, diazepam, and Exol-5 recovered from Usman Musa traveling to Kano in a commercial bus.
- Maiduguri, Borno State: 30.1kg skunk recovered from the residence of Binta Usman on Wednesday, July 23, with her accomplice Bala Abdullahi arrested two days later.
- Idoani, Ondo State: Three brothers, Nanna, Chizom, and Maxwell Ozirinye, were arrested during a raid on a cannabis plantation where 2,500kg of skunk was destroyed, and 121.4kg recovered.
- Benin City, Edo State: Bright Sunday Okon (26) was arrested in Asakpa community with various strains of cannabis—Colorado, Loud, Arizona, skunk, and methamphetamine.
- Keffi, Nasarawa State: 105.4kg of skunk was seized from an abandoned Honda car.
- Minna, Niger State: 6,400 pills of Tramadol were recovered from Bashir Abdullahi at Kasuwan Gwari.
- Ifo, Ogun State: 113kg skunk retrieved from a notorious drug dealer, Jamiu Omolaja, following violent resistance.
- Gombe State: 10,910 capsules of Tramadol seized from Adamu Adamu (a.k.a Dankyado) on Gombe-Bajoga Road.
- Kogi State: NDLEA intercepted drugs hidden in garri, dried scent leaves, and other food items on Okene-Lokoja highway, with a follow-up arrest of Kindness Bala (27) in Abuja. A separate raid in Ayingba yielded 23,600 pills of Tramadol, 300 ampoules of Pentazocine, and 700g of skunk.
Meanwhile, the War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitization campaign continued across the country. Lectures and outreach efforts were held in Oyo, Ebonyi, Sokoto, and Lagos states, with advocacy visits made to traditional rulers in Anambra.
Commending the operations, NDLEA Chairman/CEO Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd) lauded officers across all commands for their efforts in maintaining a balance between drug supply reduction and demand control.
