In a relentless campaign to dismantle narcotics cartels across the country, operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have intercepted a Milan-bound businessman, Philip Tunde, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos.
The suspect was caught with 4.80 kilograms of cocaine cleverly concealed in the soles of shoes and the structural railings of his travel luggage.
According to a statement released on Sunday, October 4, 2026, by the NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, the 38-year-old suspect was cornered on Sunday, September 27, 2026, at the Terminal 2 joint screening point
The arrest was executed just as Tunde prepared to board a Royal Air Maroc flight to Milan, Italy
Detailing the tactical discovery, Babafemi stated.
”A thorough search by NDLEA operatives led to the recovery of 16 parcels of white powdery substance hidden in the soles of eight pairs of trainers and canvas shoes, plus 195 wraps of same substance concealed in the railings of four travelling bags.”
Forensic tests subsequently confirmed the substance as cocaine, weighing a total of 4.80kg. During interrogation, the suspect claimed he paid ₦16 million in cash for the cocaine stuffed into the shoes, while the consignment stashed in the bags was meant for delivery to a business partner in Italy.
He further alleged that the capital was raised from a compensation payout he received following an industrial accident at an Italian plastic manufacturing company, where he lost the tips of two fingers.
Simultaneously, the agency’s maritime commands recorded a massive breakthrough. NDLEA operatives stationed at the Apapa, Tincan Island, and Onne seaports successfully intercepted multiple container shipments loaded with Loud—a potent strain of cannabis—and codeine-based syrup valued at over ₦5 billion.
The multi-billion naira bust was the climax of months of rigorous intelligence gathering and rigorous tracking of the shipments from their foreign ports of origin.
At the Apapa Port in Lagos, NDLEA operatives—acting on targeted intelligence—collaborated with the Nigeria Customs Service and other key stakeholders to subject two containers from Bangkok, Thailand, to a rigorous 100 percent physical examination.
However, a search of the first container uncovered 161 parcels of Thai Loud weighing 124kg [Daily Post]. The illicit haul, valued at a staggering ₦372 million, was found cleverly stashed inside two refrigerators and two cartons.
Simultaneously, a high-stakes interception unfolded at the Onne Port in Rivers State. Acting on processed intelligence, the NDLEA watch-listed two suspect containers, subjecting them to a joint security examination. Inside the first container, operatives discovered 40 packs of Loud weighing 22kg hidden inside a travel bag and buried within three of five imported vehicles: a Toyota Matrix, a Toyota Corolla, and a Hyundai Elantra.
The second container yielded a massive haul of 109,600 bottles of codeine-based cough syrup weighing 16,440kg. In a sophisticated smuggling maneuver, the container had initially departed from India and stopped in Saudi Arabia, where its original history was intentionally deleted to evade security radar. Together, the Onne Port codeine and Loud consignments command a combined street value of ₦833.2 million.
The maritime crackdown intensified at the Tincan Island Port in Lagos. On Tuesday, September 29, NDLEA operatives conducted a joint examination of a watch-listed container arriving from Montreal, Canada. The operation blew the lid off a massive cache of 2,595 parcels of Canadian Loud weighing 1,297.5kg. The narcotics were packed into 24 blue drums and six jumbo bags, then concealed inside an imported Toyota Sienna and a Hyundai Elantra. The street value of this single Canadian consignment is estimated at over ₦3.8 billion.
Meanwhile, the NDLEA’s inland commands recorded equal victory against local syndicates. In Osun State, operatives invaded a massive cannabis plantation spanning 8.0936 hectares in Area 4, Ife South Local Government Area. A total of 20,234 kilograms of skunk were systematically destroyed directly on the farm.
Complementing the nationwide dragnet, operatives in Plateau State successfully cornered a key suspect, 41-year-old Agbo Dennis, at the West of Mines area of Jos North. Dennis was arrested following the intelligence-led seizure of 33 bags of skunk weighing 385kg, sealing a highly successful multi-state sweep for the anti-narcotics agency.
The anti-narcotics sweeps intensified across Lagos on Monday, September 28, 2026, when NDLEA operatives raided an unoccupied compound at Divine Estate, Ago Palace, recovering a massive cache of 209,000 tramadol tablets.
Two days later, a clinical follow-up operation at the Ladipo Spare Parts Market led to the arrest of 23-year-old Ekundayo Taiwo, who was intercepted after a commercial bus driver on the Lagos-Ibadan expressway was found transporting his waybill package: 61 grams of Colorado (a synthetic strain of cannabis) and 24 grams of methamphetamine hidden inside an energy drink bottle.
In a similar transit interception in Kogi State, highway patrol officers along the Okene-Lokoja expressway flagged down a Lagos-to-Abuja commuter bus on Wednesday, September 30.
A search uncovered a waybill concealing 1kg of methamphetamine packaged inside two sachets. Launching an immediate sting operation, operatives tracked and arrested the rightful owner of the consignment, 29-year-old Michael Chukwuememka Uzoma, at Utako in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
The agency’s relentless momentum extended into Edo State on Friday, October 2. A targeted raid on the residence of 35-year-old Saturday Omimi in the Uyere community, Ovia North-East Local Government Area, yielded 32.2kg of cannabis sativa.
That same day, operatives at the Auchi Bypass in Benin City cornered 23-year-old Osazuwa Iyabor Michael, catching him with a dangerous multi-drug cocktail comprising 59 grams of Loud, 12 grams of Colorado, 19 grams of Tramadol, 16 grams of methamphetamine, and traces of Swinol and Molly.
A major milestone in judicial accountability was achieved on Tuesday, September 29, when NDLEA operatives finally captured 47-year-old fugitive Idris Mohammed Kurra—six years after he jumped bail. Kurra, who was standing trial at the Federal High Court in Jos, Plateau State, for dealing in 198 kilograms of skunk, had been on the run since evading his court-granted bail in December 2020.
Paralleling these high-stakes enforcement operations, the NDLEA sustained its preventive War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) campaign over the past week.
Enforcement commands rolled out critical sensitization programs across schools, worship centers, and marketplaces nationwide. Strategic enlightenment lectures were delivered to students and faculty at several institutions, including St. Paul’s Secondary School (Oji, Enugu), Olu-Odo Primary School (Igbogbo, Ikorodu, Lagos), Government Junior Secondary School (Tsamiya, Kano), Christ’s School (Ado Ekiti), and Government Science Secondary School (Lokoja, Kogi State).
Reacting to the expansive multi-state breakthroughs, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), highly commended the tactical precision of the MMIA, Apapa, Tincan, PHPC, Lagos, Edo, Bauchi, Plateau, and Osun Commands.
Praising their intelligence-driven framework, Marwa urged operatives nationwide to fiercely sustain the onslaught against global trafficking syndicates while maintaining the agency’s balanced enforcement and preventive drug control strategy.
