NDLEA Seizes N12.4bn Cannabis at Lagos Port, Arrests China-Bound Businesswoman with Cocaine

Arrested China-bound businesswoman

NDLEA Seizes N12.4bn Cannabis at Lagos Port, Arrests China-Bound Businesswoman with Cocaine

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intercepted a massive 4,959 kilograms of Canadian Loud cannabis valued at N12.397 billion at the Apapa Port in Lagos. In a separate intelligence-led operation at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, the agency arrested a China-bound businesswoman with 7.5 kilograms of cocaine concealed in a false luggage compartment.

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has recorded multiple major anti-narcotics breakthroughs across Nigeria. The agency intercepted a 40-foot container of Canadian Loud cannabis worth N12.397 billion at the Apapa Port in Lagos, arrested a businesswoman attempting to smuggle 7.5 kilograms of cocaine to China, and dismantled a criminal syndicate that plants illicit drugs in the luggage of unsuspecting passengers at motor parks. The arrests and seizures were disclosed in a statement issued on Sunday by the NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi.

The agency said operatives had tracked the 40-foot container carrying the Canadian Loud shipment for over four weeks before intercepting it on June 23 during a joint examination with officers of the Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies at the Apapa Port. A total of 4,959 kilograms of the illicit drug consignment, worth N12,397,500,000 in street value, was recovered. The container, which also contained a Ford and a Nissan vehicle, had been under surveillance since April 25, when it departed Toronto, Canada. The shipment traveled by truck to Montreal, moved by rail before passing through Tanger Med Port in Morocco, where it was loaded onto another vessel on May 23. It arrived at Tin Can Port, Lagos, on June 4, was discharged the following day, and later transferred to Apapa Port, where it was intercepted.

READ ALSO:

In a separate operation, NDLEA operatives arrested 38-year-old businesswoman Iwebema Ogechi Peace at the departure hall of Terminal 2 of the Lagos airport on June 21 while she was preparing to board a Qatar Airways flight to Beijing, China. Acting on credible intelligence, officers searched her luggage and discovered four large parcels of cocaine weighing 7.5 kilograms, expertly concealed in a professionally fabricated false bottom compartment of her suitcase. The suspect reportedly told investigators she frequently traveled to China to purchase goods for sale in Nigeria.

The NDLEA also announced the dismantling of a criminal syndicate operating between Anambra State and the Federal Capital Territory that secretly plants illicit drugs inside the luggage of unsuspecting passengers traveling by commercial buses. The operation began after NDLEA officers intercepted a Sienna bus traveling from Nnewi, Anambra State, to Abuja at Abaji on June 20. During the search, officers recovered 467.7 grams of suspected methamphetamine concealed inside a waybill package hidden among passengers’ luggage. The woman identified as the intended recipient, Gloria Peter, was arrested at Utako Motor Park but denied ownership or knowledge of the drug package. Her denial prompted investigators to arrest loaders at the departure park in Nnewi. One of the loaders confessed that he had secretly placed the narcotics inside the woman’s luggage on the instructions of the driver, identified as Abdurrazak Isah. Further interrogation led to the arrest of another passenger, Onyebuchi Victor Okoye, who was identified as the actual owner of the illicit consignment.

In another intelligence-led operation, NDLEA operatives arrested 57-year-old Ikechukwu Uwakwe at Iddo Motor Park in Lagos with 209.5 kilograms of Scottish Loud, another potent strain of cannabis, allegedly being transported to Enugu State. Similarly, two nationals of the Benin Republic—Hossou Tito Julien, 30, and Mancellim Dossou, 19—alongside a Nigerian, Jackson ThankGod, were arrested after operatives intercepted their truck on the Mile 2 Bridge in Lagos. A search of the vehicle uncovered 558,900 pills of Tramadol 250mg concealed inside a specially fabricated compartment after the consignment was allegedly smuggled into Nigeria from Togo through the Benin Republic. Along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, NDLEA officers also arrested Lucky Abonga and Osas Azamobo while transporting 118 kilograms of skunk concealed among legitimate goods in a truck traveling from Lagos to Onitsha. In another Lagos raid, Helen Ese Idiji, 40, and Rashidat Sa’adullah, 53, were arrested with 28.8 kilograms of skunk at a residence in Amukoko. Investigators said Helen allegedly used the premises to store and distribute illicit drugs.

Commending officers involved in the operations, NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig.-Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), praised their sustained efforts in reducing drug supply while intensifying preventive drug education, urging them to remain resolute in the fight against illicit drug trafficking. Beyond enforcement operations, the agency said it sustained its nationwide War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) campaign with sensitization programs in schools and communities across Yobe, Lagos, Kano, Kogi, and Enugu states.