*....The crackdown exposed opioids disguised as Ghana soap and recovered safe-hidden cocaine from a dismantled drug den*
In a major breakthrough against cross-border drug trafficking, operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have intercepted massive consignments of Captagon—notoriously dubbed the ‘Jihadi drug’—alongside millions of opioid pills worth over ₦6.2 billion at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Ikeja, Lagos.
A statement released on Sunday, August 30, 2026, by the Agency’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, confirmed that the high-stakes Captagon shipment was seized at the Lagos airport on Saturday, August 22, 2026. The seizure followed the tactical arrest of a 49-year-old cross-border kingpin, Akinbile Kazeem Aikins, who had just arrived from Accra, Ghana, aboard an Africa World Airlines flight.
A thorough search of his luggage, which contained cartons of a local bathing soap popularly called “Ghana Soap,” led to the recovery of 47,200 pills of the illicit amphetamine drug, valued at over ₦1.5 billion, expertly concealed inside the soap blocks. Captagon, which gained infamy as the ‘Jihadi drug’ for its role in funding extremist activities in global conflict zones, was first intercepted in Nigeria by the NDLEA in September 2021 at the Apapa Port in Lagos. Following his arrest, Akinbile confessed that he was contracted to deliver the deadly consignment to the northern part of the country.
In a parallel operation at the MMIA import shed, NDLEA operatives scored another massive win, recovering no fewer than 3,900,030 tablets of Tramaking 225mg and Tapentadol 250mg. The abandoned cargo—weighing a massive 2,787.40 kilograms—boasts a staggering street value of more than ₦4.6 billion.
Meanwhile, investigation revealed that three of the shipments, containing 900,000 tablets of Tramaking (815.40kg), arrived via RwandAir flights from Bangladesh, while the fourth consignment, holding 3,000,030 tablets of Tapentadol (1,972kg), arrived via Qatar Airways from Amsterdam.
The abandoned airport shipments had been placed under strict surveillance after tracking signals went cold. Following days of waiting, a joint task force comprising NDLEA officers, Nigeria Customs Service officials, and other security stakeholders formally opened and retrieved the cargo on Friday, August 28, 2026.
Similarly, a 31-year-old United States returnee, Sowunmi David Oludotun, was intercepted by NDLEA operatives in the upscale Ikate area of Lekki, Lagos, on August 19, 2026. Oludotun was arrested after showing up to claim a delivery of 3.350 kilograms of “Loud,” a high-potency synthetic strain of cannabis smuggled in from the United Kingdom.
Down in Rivers State, a tactical raid on the notorious Abuja Down/Up criminal axis of Port Harcourt exposed a heavily fortified drug den. During the operation, operatives seized a massive, fireproof iron safe designed to protect high-value contraband. When engineers finally cracked open the safe with a welding machine on Tuesday, August 25, 2026, it yielded 316 grams of cocaine, 237 grams of Colorado, and 10 grams of heroin.
The agency’s regional sweeps also crippled trafficking rings across neighboring states:
Ondo State intercept: On Friday, August 28, 2026, operatives along the Ipele-Idoani Road intercepted a truck marked KRE 120 XB. A search exposed 728 kilograms of skunk, leading to the immediate arrest of three suspects: Oyedele Daniel, 42; Taye Saliu, 36; and Kehinde Saliu, 36.
Aponmu Forest raid: Days earlier, on Wednesday, August 26, 2026, a sweep of the Aponmu forest led to the capture of Uche Joseph, 35, and Godwin Umeh, 21, along with 341 kilograms of illicit cannabis.
Delta State opioid shutdown: Between Wednesday, August 26, and Friday, August 28, 2026, twin interdiction operations across Delta State took over 176,000 pills of highly dangerous opioids—including Tramadol and Molly—off the streets
Simultaneously, the agency’s regional commands intensified their grassroots offensive via the War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) initiative. Over the past week, heavy sensitization campaigns targeted schools, worship centers, workplaces, and local communities across the federation.
Key engagements included targeted anti-drug enlightenment lectures at Markaz Littahfizul Quran Wal Islamiyyat in Dadin Kowa, Gombe State, and Zangina Islamiyyah Alasawa Kurna in Ungogo LGA, Kano State. Operatives also engaged youths at an adolescent lifestyle program hosted by the NNPCL in Benin City, Edo State.
Bolstering political goodwill for the crusade, the Ondo State Command paid a high-level advocacy visit to Governor Dr. Lucky Aiyedatiwa, matching a similar strategic engagement by the Taraba State Command with Governor Dr. Agbu Kefas.
Reacting to the sweeping victories, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd), highly commended the officers of the MMIA, Rivers, Ondo, and Delta commands for their operational precision.
He charged the anti-narcotics troops to sustain a balanced, multi-dimensional approach to national drug control, warning that traffickers are increasingly desperate.
“Sustain the momentum,” Marwa directed, ordering commands nationwide to remain ahead of syndicates attempting to exploit everyday household items—like local soap—to traffic illicit substances.
