NDLEA operatives arrested two British nationals and two Nigerians at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, attempting to smuggle 92 bags of “Loud”
Billion-Naira Drug Bust: NDLEA Seizes N6.5bn Worth of Opioids, Nabs British Smugglers in Multi-State Crackdown
In a sweeping offensive against drug trafficking, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has confiscated over ₦6.5 billion worth of illicit opioids and codeine syrup across major Nigerian ports, while also arresting two British nationals in a coordinated sting at Lagos airport.
Disclosing the bust in a statement on Sunday, May 25, 2025, NDLEA’s Director of Media & Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, said the seizures were the result of intelligence-led operations and thorough cargo inspections at the Port Harcourt Ports Complex and Apapa Seaport in Lagos.
The agency recovered six million pills of high-strength opioids including Tamol 225mg, Tapentadol 225mg, and Carisoprodol 225mg, along with 332,000 bottles of codeine-based syrup during a joint inspection at Onne Port on May 19 and 20, involving Customs and other security forces. At Apapa Port, another 170,000 bottles of codeine syrup were intercepted on May 22.
In a related operation, NDLEA operatives arrested two British nationals and two Nigerians at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, attempting to smuggle 92 bags of “Loud,” a potent cannabis strain weighing 51.10kg.
The suspects—Mhizha Jordan Alexander Tatendra, Ayedipe Andrew Adejuwon, Shonowo Oluwaseun Imole, and Ofuoma Omokaro Ayobami—were busted at the airport car park after agents tracked the handover of the contraband flown in from Doha via Qatar Airways. A follow-up search at the syndicate leader’s residence in Lekki uncovered ₦3.8 million, 17,200 South African Rand, high-end gadgets, and nitrous oxide canisters.
Beyond the ports and airports, the NDLEA is intensifying efforts nationwide. Over 77,000kg of skunk was destroyed on cannabis farms in Cross River and Edo States. Significant drug hauls were also recorded in Nasarawa (4,000kg), Kaduna, Yobe, Bauchi, and Niger States. In Nasarawa’s Keffi area, traffickers were caught concealing skunk beneath raw wood in a lorry; another suspect was caught with 154.5kg in Karu.
In Lagos, raids in Lekki and Ibeju-Lekki led to arrests and seizures of cocaine, methamphetamine, codeine, cannabis, molly, and laughing gas, disrupting several local distribution rings.
Meanwhile, under its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) initiative, the agency conducted sensitization campaigns in schools across Katsina, Akwa Ibom, Ebonyi, Adamawa, and Kano States. The Lagos Command also visited the Sarkin Fulani of Lagos, Alhaji Muhammadu Bambado, to deepen community advocacy.
Chairman/Chief Executive of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd.), praised the agency’s operatives for their resilience. “Their unwavering commitment to both supply and demand reduction is driving our progress in the fight against drug abuse in Nigeria,” he said. Read More
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