NDLEA Arrests Smuggler, Ex-Convict, Seizes Over One Million Opioid Pills In Nationwide Crackdown
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has carried out a series of high-profile operations across Nigeria, leading to the seizure of massive drug consignments and the arrest of several suspects, including an ex-convict and an international smuggler.
In a statement released by Femi Babafemi, the agency’s Director of Media and Advocacy, on Sunday, the NDLEA detailed the arrests and seizures that underscore its intensified efforts against drug trafficking and abuse.
At the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA), NDLEA operatives intercepted Olisaka Chibuzo Calistus, an import-export businessman, attempting to smuggle 256 wraps of cocaine weighing 6 kilograms into the country. The drugs were concealed in his body, marking the largest cocaine seizure at the Kano airport since the establishment of the NDLEA command there in 2006.
The operation occurred on December 15, 2024, during the inward clearance of passengers on Ethiopian Airlines flight ET 941 from Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, via Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
In another operation at Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, NDLEA officers apprehended ex-convict Olanrewaju Bada Akorede. Akorede, previously fined ₦900,000 for a similar offence, was caught trying to export Rohypnol concealed within a shipment of gari, shoes, and other items bound for South Africa.
Italy-based businesswoman Cynthia Akaeen was arrested at Lagos airport while attempting to board a flight to Italy with 9,190 tramadol tablets weighing 6 kilograms.
In a significant raid in Onitsha, Anambra State, the NDLEA uncovered 418,330 pills of tramadol and tapentadol, alongside 8,000 bottles of codeine syrup.
In Maiduguri, Borno State, multiple operations led to the confiscation of tramadol capsules, cannabis, ammunition, and other psychoactive substances.
Additional operations in Oyo and Enugu States, and a joint security raid at Tincan Island Port, Lagos, resulted in the interception of 180,000 bottles of codeine syrup hidden in a container shipped from India.
Beyond enforcement, the NDLEA has ramped up its War Against Drug Abuse campaign, focusing on community outreach in Adamawa, Kano, and Kebbi states. The initiative includes educational programmes in schools, religious centres, and workplaces to raise awareness about the dangers of drug abuse.
The NDLEA reiterated its commitment to dismantling drug trafficking networks and curbing the spread of illicit substances across the nation.
