The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) yesterday announced the arrests of two brothers with cocaine at the international wing of the Murtala Muhammed Airport in Lagos.
Spokesman for the agency said in a statement that the suspects, Messrs John Abugu, 43, and Kenneth Abugu, 31 were caught in possession of 5 kilogrammes of cocaine concealed in walls of their suitcases as they attempted to board a flight to India.
“The two brothers were arrested at the Lagos airport on Thursday 3rd April 2025 following proactive processing of credible intelligence,” the statement reads.
“They claimed they were travelling to India for medical treatment but when their suitcases were thoroughly searched by NDLEA officers, whitish powdery substances later confirmed to be cocaine were discovered on the walls of their bags,” the statement said.
The agency also said its operatives arrested one Parker Osei, a Ghanaian-British man, with parcels of cannabis at the same airport.
The 20-year-old man was allegedly apprehended with 36 parcels of loud, a strong strain of cannabis, weighing 19.40 kilogrammes packed in a “giant” travelling bag.
Babafemi said the suspect, who claimed to be a student of computer science at East London University, UK, was arrested on Thursday during the inward clearance of passengers on an Ethiopian airlines flight from Bangkok, Thailand, at the e-arrival hall of the Lagos airport.
He said upon questioning, Osei claimed to live with his parents in the UK but left London a week ago for Bangkok where he picked up the illicit drug consignment for delivery in Nigeria.
The spokesperson also announced other arrest of suspects across the country.
He said NDLEA operatives in Kogi arrested Ngozi Ogili, a 33-year-old lady moving 3 kilogrammes of methamphetamine from Lagos to Abuja.
The anti-narcotics agency spokesman said the woman was nabbed in a commercial transport bus along Okene-Lokoja highway on March 31.
“A follow-up operation at her point of delivery in the Apo mechanic area of Abuja led to the seizure of quantities of Loud and Colorado, both synthetic strains of cannabis,” Babafemi said.
In Abia state, NDLEA officers apprehended David Chinemerem, 21, with 2,050 ampoules of pentazocine in Aba.
Babafemi said Nnanna Felix, a 75-year-old man, was also nabbed on Saturday with 1.6kg skunk, a strain of cannabis during a raid at Umunteke Asa, Ukwa west LGA of the south-east state.
He added that raid operations at Osogbo Motor Park, Onitsha and a house in Idemili LGA of Anambra state, led to the arrest of Obinna Sunday and the seizure of 195,000 pills of tramadol.
Also arrested during the raid at the motor park was Ugochukwu Ojalanonye with 4.2 kilogrammes of codeine syrup and 5.4 kilogrammes of pentazocine.
In the north, Babafemi said no fewer than 381 bottles of codeine syrup and 108 tablets of tramadol were seized from a suspect, Abdullahi Adamu along Potiskum-Damaturu road, Yobe state on Saturday 5th April.
“In the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, NDLEA operatives on Thursday 3rd April arrested 51-year-old Sunday Ayogu with 25kg skunk and 90.4g of methamphetamine during a raid operation at Wuse market Abuja, while two ladies: Faith Effiong Etim, 64, and Victoria Asuquo Etim, 40, were nabbed on Friday 4th April when NDLEA operatives supported by men of the Nigerian Army raided cannabis plantations in Esuk-Odot community, Odukpani LGA of Cross River State where 250,000 kilogrammes of the psychoactive plant were destroyed on over 100 hectares of farmland.
“With the same vigour, Commands and formations of the Agency across the country continued their War Against Drug Abuse, WADA, sensitization activities to schools, worship centres, workplaces and communities among others in the past week.
“These include: WADA enlightenment lecture to students and staff of Cave City Secondary School, Ogidi, Anambra state; residents of Dan’iyau village, Batagarawa LGA, Katsina; and members of Nigerian Association of Patent and Proprietary Medicine Dealers in Sangere and Kwanan Waya, Yola, Adamawa state, among others,” Babafemi said.
