Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have intercepted several consignments of illicit drugs concealed in frozen snails, electrical bulbs, and female clothes bound for the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
According to a statement issued on Sunday by the agency’s spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, the interceptions were made at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) and a courier company in Lagos.
Babafemi disclosed that two suspects have been arrested in connection with the seizures. One of them, a cargo agent identified as Boladale Riliwan, was arrested on October 7, 2025, after NDLEA operatives discovered 15 parcels of skunk concealed in 10 pieces of giant rechargeable electrical bulbs he attempted to export to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Another suspect, 48-year-old UK-based public health assistant, Olawale Hakeemot, was arrested on October 12 at the departure hall of Terminal 2 of the MMIA, Ikeja. She was found with 2,300 pills of tramadol 225mg hidden in frozen snails while attempting to board a Qatar Airways flight to Manchester, United Kingdom.
Babafemi added that a separate syndicate’s attempt to export 810 pills of bromazepam concealed in female clothes to the United States was also foiled by NDLEA officers at a courier company in Lagos on October 16.
In Adamawa State, operatives intercepted a suspect, Bello Buba, at an NDLEA checkpoint in Namtari, Yola South Local Government Area, with 38,270 pills of tramadol concealed in the spare tyre, boot, and door compartments of his Honda Civic. The suspect allegedly drove from the Benin Republic to smuggle the drugs into Nigeria.
In Ekiti State, NDLEA operatives destroyed 53,250 kilograms of cannabis cultivated on 21.3 hectares of farmland in Ilawe-Ekiti and recovered another 1,140 kilograms packed in 70 bags. Three suspects — Matthew Emmanuel, 26; James Moses, 27; and Israel Samuel, 20 — were arrested during the operation, which lasted between October 12 and 13.
Similarly, 17,400 kilograms of cannabis were destroyed on 6.96 hectares of farmland in the Aponmu forest reserve, Akure, Ondo State, on October 12.
In Oyo State, four suspects — Aliyu Muhammed, 50; Babarinde Segun, 32; Ogunbiyi Sanjo, 30; and Ajani Oluro, 30 — were arrested with 596 kilograms of skunk at Apata-Ako, Igboora. Two others, Jacob Afolabi, 30, and Salako Oluwatobi, 25, were caught with 273 kilograms of the same substance at Odo-Oyan, Igangan, on October 16.
In Ogun State, a suspect, Joseph Andrew, was arrested with 88 kilograms of cannabis at Ona-Imeko on October 15, while in Imo State, 42-year-old Festus Udoh was caught with 13,000 pills of opioids along the Onitsha-Owerri Road.
Also, in Enugu State, operatives recovered 74.5 kilograms of cannabis from the store of one Joseph Chukwujamaa at Umuogbo-Agu village on October 18. In Lagos, 11 bags of cannabis weighing 117 kilograms were recovered from the base of a suspect, Ramoni Olukowi, in Mushin on the same day.
Babafemi further disclosed that a total of 80,000 bottles of codeine-based syrup were intercepted in a container earlier placed on watchlist by the agency. The seizure was made during a joint examination of the shipment with officers of the Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies at the Apapa Port on October 14.
Earlier, NDLEA had also arrested a 52-year-old businessman, Ejiofor Godwin Emeka, who excreted 69 wraps of cocaine after his interception at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano. Ejiofor, who runs boutiques in Lagos and Onitsha, Anambra State, was arrested upon arrival from Bangkok, Thailand, on an Ethiopian Airlines flight on October 8, following credible intelligence.