NDLEA Intercepts Brazil Returnees With 116 Drug Wraps, Busts Meth, Cocaine, and Skunk Shipments Nationwide
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has recorded a string of major busts across the country, including the arrest of two Brazil returnees who excreted a combined 116 wraps of heroin and cocaine, as well as multiple seizures of methamphetamine, opioids, and cannabis.
Brazil Returnees Nabbed at Lagos Airport
Operatives at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, arrested 46-year-old Ofoma Sunday on September 16, 2025, after a body scan confirmed he had ingested illicit drugs.
He was later placed under observation and expelled 111 wraps of heroin weighing 1.45kg. A follow-up operation led to the arrest of Nweke Jude Chukwudi, 55, at a hotel in Amuwo Odofin, Lagos, where he was scheduled to oversee the retrieval of the drugs.
In a separate incident on September 19, another returnee, Ukachukwu Frank Ikechukwu, was intercepted during inward clearance of passengers from Brazil. Under observation, he excreted five wraps of cocaine weighing 145g.
He confessed to initially concealing nine wraps, but due to severe pain, he expelled and flushed some during his transit in Addis Ababa.
Businesswoman Caught With Meth in Underwear
On September 14, Ebere Theresa Okolonkwo, a businesswoman, was arrested at the Lagos airport after Aviation Security and NDLEA officers discovered 1.40kg of methamphetamine concealed in her butt-pad underwear as she attempted to board a Qatar Airways flight to Doha.
Meth, Cocaine Seizures in Export Shipments
At the NAHCO export shed on September 15, NDLEA operatives intercepted food items laced with 40 wraps of methamphetamine weighing 2.3kg en route to Hong Kong.
The sender, Ifeanyi Venatus Umelo, 59, was arrested. Days later, on September 18, cocaine hidden in phone chargers bound for New Zealand was uncovered, weighing 257g.
Major Raids in Northern States
NDLEA operatives also carried out multiple operations in the North:
In Adamawa, 233,800 tramadol pills were seized in three separate raids, with suspects including Rita Zira and Halilu Abubakar arrested.
In Zamfara, officers and Community Protection Guards intercepted a truck carrying 109 bags of skunk (1,099.4kg) along the Gummi-Daki Takwas road.
In Yobe, two suspects were caught with 14,000 tramadol capsules along Damaturu-Potiskum road.
In Taraba, Anas Hamisu, 28, was arrested with 25.5kg of skunk.
In Edo, two cannabis farms covering over 4.5 hectares were destroyed, yielding over 11,000kg. Three suspects were arrested.
Nationwide Advocacy Continues
While intensifying enforcement, NDLEA also scaled up its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) campaign with sensitization programs across schools, religious centers, and communities in Sokoto, Katsina, Jigawa, Benue, and Kano, among others.
NDLEA Chairman/CEO, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended the operatives for the coordinated operations, stressing that the agency remains resolute in dismantling drug trafficking syndicates and shielding Nigerian youths from illicit substances.
“These arrests and seizures mark another milestone in our fight against drug cartels. We will continue to deploy a balanced approach — enforcement and prevention — until traffickers can no longer target our communities or tarnish Nigeria’s global reputation,” Marwa said.
