Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have intercepted consignments of cocaine and opioids concealed in cartons of clothes and other items destined for the United Kingdom and Australia, as the agency intensified its crackdown on drug trafficking networks across the country.
The anti-narcotics agency disclosed that the seizures were made at a courier company in Lagos on Friday, May 15, 2026, during the examination of export shipments heading overseas. According to the NDLEA, 170 grams of cocaine sealed in cellophane parcels and hidden within the walls of a carton containing clothes meant for Australia were recovered during the operation.
The agency also said another consignment bound for the United Kingdom contained a cache of opioids concealed inside cartons. Recovered items included 200 ampoules of pentazocine injection, 1,100 capsules of tramadol, and 100 ampoules of promethazine injection.
The latest seizures came days after NDLEA operatives uncovered massive quantities of illicit drugs in different parts of the country. In Delta State, operatives raided Ejeonu village in Ukwuani Local Government Area on Sunday, May 10, destroying 27,500 kilograms of skunk spread across 11 hectares of farmland. The agency also recovered 22.9 kilograms of the substance and arrested a 52-year-old suspect identified as Ifeanyichukwu Peter during a follow-up operation at Obiaruku.
A separate raid at Orogun village in Ughelli North Local Government Area on Tuesday, May 12, led to the destruction of another 37,500 kilograms of skunk cultivated on 15 hectares of farmland. NDLEA operatives, supported by soldiers, also recovered 55.4 kilograms of the psychoactive substance and arrested 30-year-old Godwin Vincent Osadera. The combined operations resulted in the destruction of 65,000 kilograms of skunk.
In Kaduna State, operatives recovered 361 kilograms of skunk during a raid at the Dan Magaji area of Zaria town on Wednesday, May 13, leading to the arrest of a 42-year-old suspect, Husaini Suleiman. The same command also intercepted 1,989 rounds of military-grade RLA 7.62mm ammunition concealed inside bags of cassava granules, popularly known as garri, along the Abuja-Kaduna highway. The suspect, identified as 35-year-old Abdullahi Hassan, was subsequently handed over to another security agency for further investigation.
The agency also uncovered a drug-laced confectionery operation in the Federal Capital Territory. NDLEA operatives arrested a 29-year-old businessman, Ogadi Peter, in the Life Camp area of Abuja on Monday, May 11, after intelligence reports linked him to the production of cannabis-infused cakes and cookies for parties and social gatherings. Officers recovered 800 grams of skunk and 2.70 kilograms of drug-laced cookies from his residence.
Elsewhere, the agency arrested Aliyu Sani with 181 kilograms of skunk during a raid in the Ogere area of Ogun State on Wednesday, May 13. In Taraba State, operatives arrested 27-year-old Sufiyanu Mohammed Misa along the Zaki-Biam Road in Wukari Local Government Area with 105,850 pills of opioids, including tramadol, diazepam and exol-5.
In Oyo State, two suspects identified as Adeleke Olamide Aliyah, 20, and Aloba Abdulazeez, 25, were arrested in Saki town over the seizure of 99 litres of skuchies, a locally prepared cocktail mixed with illicit substances. In Edo State, NDLEA operatives destroyed 1,388.4175 kilograms of skunk during raids on two farms located in Ago Forest, Orhionmwon Local Government Area.
The agency also recorded seizures in Kano State, where operatives recovered 1.2 kilograms of tramaking 225mg pills hidden inside a 25-litre jerry can filled with palm oil at Kofar Ruwa motor park. Another suspect, Aminu Isa, was arrested in the Sabuwar Sharada area with 30.5 kilograms of skunk.
Beyond enforcement activities, the NDLEA said its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) advocacy campaign continued across schools and communities nationwide. Sensitisation programmes were conducted in educational institutions in Oyo, Niger, Lagos, Katsina, Ekiti and Kano states as part of efforts to reduce drug demand and raise awareness among young people.
Reacting to the latest operations, NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), commended officers involved in the arrests and seizures across the affected states.
Marwa praised the commands for maintaining “a fair balance between their drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction efforts,” while reaffirming the agency’s commitment to dismantling drug trafficking networks operating within and outside Nigeria.
