…Intercepts Over 80,000 Bottles of Codeine
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), on Sunday, said it arrested 20 suspects and intercepted multiple consignments of illicit drugs concealed in frozen snails, electrical bulbs, and female clothes destined for the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Mr Femi Babafemi, said over 54,500 kilograms of skunk, 80,000 bottles of codeine-based syrup, and more than 53,000 pills of opioids and psychotropic substances were seized during operations across Lagos, Ekiti, Adamawa, Oyo, Ogun, Ondo, Enugu, Imo, and Katsina between October 12 and 18, 2025.
The agency’s weekly bulletin, released on Sunday revealed that over “53,250 kilograms of skunk were destroyed on 21.3 hectares of farmland in Ekiti State, while thousands of pills of tramadol and bromazepam were recovered” in Lagos, Adamawa, and other states.
NDLEA disclosed that most of the intercepted consignments were concealed in unusual forms in an attempt to evade detection by narcotic officers at airports, courier companies, and highway checkpoints.
On October 12, NDLEA operatives in Adamawa intercepted Bello Buba at a checkpoint in Namtari, Yola South LGA, with 38,270 pills of tramadol concealed in the spare tyre, boot, and door compartments of his Honda Civic. He reportedly drove the vehicle from the Benin Republic to smuggle the consignment into Nigeria.
The same day, officers in Ekiti State destroyed 53,250 kilograms of skunk on 21.3 hectares of cannabis farmland in Ilawe Ekiti, and recovered an additional 1,140 kilograms from nearby storage facilities.
Three suspects — Matthew Emmanuel (26), James Moses (27), and Israel Samuel (20) — were arrested in connection with the farm. In Ondo State, NDLEA personnel razed 17,400 kilograms of skunk on a 6.96-hectare plantation in Aponmu Forest Reserve.
On October 13, the operation in Ekiti continued, leading to further seizures from the destroyed cannabis farm.
By October 14, NDLEA officers at Apapa Port, Lagos, jointly examined a container previously placed under surveillance and discovered 80,000 bottles of codeine-based syrup imported from India.
On October 15, operatives in Ogun State arrested Joseph Andrew with 88 kilograms of skunk at Ona-Imeko, while Festus Udoh (42) was caught with 13,000 pills of opioids along the Onitsha–Owerri Road, Imo State.
On October 16, two syndicates attempting to export drugs from Lagos were apprehended. NDLEA intercepted 810 pills of bromazepam concealed in female clothes heading to the United States via a courier company.
In Oyo State, six suspects — Aliyu Muhammed (50), Babarinde Segun (32), Ogunbiyi Sanjo (30), Ajani Oluro (30), Jacob Afolabi (30), and Salako Oluwatobi (25) — were caught with a combined 869 kilograms of skunk in separate operations at Apata-Ako, Igboora, and Odo-Oyan, Igangan.
On October 18, NDLEA officers recovered 74.5 kilograms of skunk from the store of Joseph Chukwujamaa at Umuogbo-Agu Village, Enugu State, and seized 117 kilograms of skunk from the base of Ramoni Olukowi in Mushin, Lagos.
Earlier on October 7, NDLEA officers at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) arrested Boladale Riliwan, a cargo agent, for attempting to ship 15 parcels of skunk concealed in 10 giant rechargeable electrical bulbs to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Five days later, on October 12, Olawale Oyebola Hakeemot (48), a UK-based Public Health Assistant, was arrested at Terminal 2 of MMIA, Ikeja, for concealing 2,300 pills of tramadol (225mg) inside frozen snails destined for Manchester, UK, aboard a Qatar Airways flight.
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