Nigeria’s National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has intercepted cannabis hidden in a container of palm oil that was intended for shipment to Saudi Arabia from Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport in Kano. Separately, the agency seized 8,725 kilogrammes of powdered tramadol at Lagos’s Apapa port, with an estimated value above N6.98 billion.
The operations formed part of a nationwide crackdown that recovered substantial volumes of cannabis and opioid products in Lagos, Edo, Ondo, Bauchi, Kano and Kaduna states, as well as the Federal Capital Territory. The agency said the enforcement actions also led to multiple arrests.
Quick facts
- A Saudi-bound passenger was allegedly carrying 511.75 grammes of cannabis disguised in a gallon of palm oil.
- Apapa port officers found 8,725 kilogrammes of tramadol powder in a shipment declared as maize starch.
- A separate Tin Can Island Port operation recovered 55 kilogrammes of Canadian Loud cannabis valued at N165 million.
- Authorities destroyed 7,500 kilogrammes of cannabis cultivated across three hectares in Ondo State.
Fatimah Ahmad was arrested on Friday, October 16, while passengers were being cleared for an Ethiopian Airlines service travelling to Jeddah through Addis Ababa. A search of her baggage found the cannabis concealed inside the palm-oil container.
Ahmad told officers that her cousin, Abubakar Yahaya, had given her the gallon. Yahaya was later taken into custody in the airport parking area.
At Apapa, NDLEA personnel worked alongside the Nigeria Customs Service and other agencies to examine a consignment from India intercepted on October 2. The cargo was listed as maize starch, but laboratory testing identified the material as tramadol hydrochloride powder.
After the drugs were removed from the concealment on October 14, officers counted 349 bags with a combined weight of 8,725 kilogrammes. The agency put the street value of the seized product at more than N6.98 billion.
At Tin Can Island Port on October 12, operatives discovered 55 kilogrammes of Canadian Loud, a high-potency cannabis variety, estimated to be worth N165 million. The drugs were placed in brown cartons inside a Toyota Sienna transported in a 40-foot shipping container.
In another Lagos operation, officers raided Idumota Market on October 14 and arrested Elizabeth Chidera Kalu. They recovered 10,600 ampoules of diazepam injection and 6,500 Molly tablets from her shop.
On the following day, officers arrested Idowu Daudu and Ahmed Oniyinde, both aged 35, in Mushin. Daudu was found with 59.95 kilogrammes of cannabis, while Oniyinde had 61.23 kilogrammes.
Also on October 15, intelligence concerning a shipment originating from Trade Fair Market led operatives to stop a truck along Iyana Oba. Tajudeen Adeduntan, described as the loading manager, and his assistant, Azeez Sikiru, were arrested.
A search of the vehicle uncovered 18,000 tablets of tramadol 250mg hidden in cartons marked as Rambo insecticide.
In Edo State, operatives conducted raids between October 15 and 16 in the Warake, Ivhiaro and Ewe/Irue communities of Owan East Local Government Area. Six people were detained and varying quantities of cannabis and other narcotics were seized.
Among those arrested was Grace Ehimeka, 85, who was allegedly found with 179 kilogrammes of cannabis in Warake. Ayo Aigberadion, 53, was apprehended in Ewe/Irue with 220.8 kilogrammes.
Other suspects included Ali Garba, 57, with 5.852 kilogrammes; Habib Braimoh, 45, with 100 grammes; and Musa Mubid, 35, with two kilogrammes of cannabis, cannabis seeds, tramadol, Swinol and diazepam. Hope Okoro, 35, was also arrested with 237 grammes of Canadian Loud.
In Ondo State, officers entered the Okemoro Isinbode camp forest on October 17 and destroyed 7,500 kilogrammes of cannabis grown over three hectares. Five suspects were arrested: Asikpo Ekpeyoung, 43; Solomon Okpani, 22; Ubong Friday, 35; Joseph Friday, 22; and Ekenimi Seth, 35.
Items recovered during that operation included 92 sacks containing 1,267 kilogrammes of cannabis, 11 kilogrammes of cannabis seeds and three kilogrammes of fresh stems. The agency said the total weight of exhibits recovered was 1,281 kilogrammes.
In a separate Ondo operation on October 16, officers traced Okunebe Ndidi, 53, to a hideout in Ameyinti in the Owo area. They recovered 25 bags of cannabis weighing 375 kilogrammes.
In Bauchi State, a Volkswagen Golf wagon driven by Shamsu Garba, 35, was stopped at Ragwam village in Katagum Local Government Area on October 14. Officers found 894,800 pills comprising tramadol capsules and Exol-5 tablets.
Later that day, a patrol on the Bauchi-Gombe Road recovered 291 cannabis blocks weighing 265 kilogrammes from an abandoned vehicle in Tudun Natsira village.
In Kano State, Ali Abdullahi, 38, and Ibrahim Adamu, 23, were arrested along the Zaria-Kano Road on October 13 with 30,100 tramadol 225mg tablets. A day later, officers arrested Murtala Dayyabu, 54, at Niger Street in Malan Kato with 100,000 Exol-5 tablets.
In Kaduna State, a raid in Kayimi village resulted in the arrest of Mohammed Sani, 48, Zaharadeen Shafiu, 29, and Yakubu Abdullahi, 20. The operation recovered 496.5 kilogrammes of cannabis.
At Food Palace on Ali Akilu Road in Kaduna, officers also detained John Ayo David, 39, with 49,500 tablets of tramadol 225mg.
In Abuja, Odo Jonas Ejike, 42, was arrested in the Utako district on October 17 with 29,500 tramadol capsules.
Alongside enforcement operations, NDLEA commands and formations continued awareness programmes under the War Against Drug Abuse initiative. The outreach covered schools, places of worship, workplaces and local communities across Nigeria.
The sensitisation sessions included lectures at Nawar-Ur-Deen High School in Ogboro, Oyo State; Elf Junior Secondary School in Bojude, Gombe State; Cherubim and Seraphim Primary School in Ikorodu, Lagos State; Harmony Secondary School in Lokoja, Kogi State; and Government Secondary School in Ikot Ansa, Calabar, Cross River State.
Further events were held at Rivers State College of Health Science and Management Technology in Port Harcourt, Mesh International School in Benin City, Edo State, and Abu Hanifa Academy in Kano Municipal, Kano State.
NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.) praised officers from the Apapa, Tin Can, Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, Lagos, Edo, Bauchi, Ondo, Kano and FCT commands for the operations. He urged personnel nationwide to maintain pressure on drug-trafficking networks while preserving the agency’s balanced drug-control strategy.
