National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) officers have taken 55-year-old Lagos merchant Onuigbo Ndubisi Chinedu into custody. He faces accusations of trying to smuggle 3.30 kilograms of cocaine to the United Kingdom by embedding the narcotics within the walls of food shipping cartons. Chinedu, who sells clothing at Balogun Market, was captured on July 23, 2026, following the earlier discovery of his illicit shipment at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport. Initial inquiries led authorities to three cargo agents—Nkwor Onyekachukwu Justina, Adeleke Abiola Taoheed, and Ukanwa Grace Pilgrim—whose eventual cooperation helped officials track down Kenneth Okakpu. It was Okakpu’s arrest that implicated Chinedu as the syndicate leader.
In other enforcement actions, the NDLEA seized 2.80kg of synthetic cannabis arriving from the United States, leading to the arrest of 31-year-old Emmanuella Chukwu-Edo in Surulere. Meanwhile, at the Lagos airport, officials intercepted over 2.2 million pills of Tapentadol valued at roughly N2.2 billion, imported from India. Additional seizures included tramadol hidden in black soap shipments and a massive haul of 2,388.5kg of Canadian Loud discovered inside vehicles at the Apapa Seaport, carrying an estimated market value exceeding N7.1 billion.
Security operations expanded outside Lagos as well. In Katsina State, Mustapha Sani was caught with hundreds of rounds of military-grade ammunition, while Abubakar Amadu was apprehended along the Abuja-Kaduna Expressway carrying hidden cartridges inside oil containers. In Edo State, authorities raided an Ilushi warehouse, confiscating over 1,300kg of cannabis products and arresting two suspects, Ojore Onweze and George Agwumede. NDLEA Chairman Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.) praised the various commands for their diligence while reinforcing the agency’s ongoing commitment to anti-drug education nationwide.
