The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) says it has intercepted opioid consignments worth about N3 billion at the import shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos.
The agency said the drugs, imported from India and Bangladesh, were discovered on Tuesday, 22 September 2026, during the joint examination of three monitored consignments.
According to the NDLEA, the operation resulted in the seizure of 2,550,000 pills of Tramaking 225mg, Tramaking 250mg and Royal Tapentadol 250mg, with a combined gross weight of 1,640.55kg.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the agency’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, said the consignments were transported into Nigeria through Qatar Airways, RwandAir and Ethiopian Airlines.
The latest seizure came amid the agency’s ongoing operations against drug trafficking and abuse across the country.
In a separate operation, NDLEA officers at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport (AIIA), Enugu, arrested a 25-year-old businessman, Lovely Chukwulobelu, for allegedly attempting to traffic cocaine to Portugal.
Babafemi said Chukwulobelu was arrested at the airport’s departure hall on Thursday, 25 September, while allegedly preparing to board an Ethiopian Airlines flight to Portugal via Addis Ababa.
The suspect was found to have ingested cocaine and was placed under excretion observation. The agency said he subsequently excreted 72 wraps of the Class A drug.
During questioning, Chukwulobelu reportedly told investigators that he previously operated a car-decoration business at the Trade Fair Complex in the Ojo area of Lagos before relocating to Portugal in May 2023.
He allegedly said he had returned to Nigeria to get married on 13 September and turned to drug trafficking in an attempt to cover expenses incurred during the wedding.
In Bauchi State, NDLEA operatives arrested two men, Umar Hamidu, 35, and Abdulkarim Salihu, 45, along the Maiduguri bypass.
The agency said the suspects were allegedly transporting 300 compressed blocks of cannabis, commonly known as skunk, weighing 262.5kg. The drugs were reportedly concealed in a false compartment of a truck marked MUB757 YH.
In Edo State, NDLEA personnel, supported by soldiers, destroyed two cannabis farms at Eko Camp, Ilushi, on Wednesday, 23 September. The agency estimated the combined potential yield of the farms at 1,360.23kg.
In Lagos, two women, Odumabo Kehinde, 36, and Obiekwe Chioma, 40, were arrested on Saturday, 26 September, during a raid on Anifowoshe Street, Mushin. NDLEA said officers recovered 3.4kg of skunk from the suspects.
The agency also reported the arrest of a 58-year-old man, Ugwu Johnson, at Ebute-Ero motor park in Lagos on the same day.
According to the NDLEA, officers recovered 5.920kg of skunk, 2,400 ampoules of pentazocine injection, 8,400 tablets of nitrazepam and 40,000 tramadol pills from him.
In Oyo State, two Togolese nationals, Yinusa Abdulsamad, 35, and Fatai Baba, 33, were arrested along the Iganna-Ilero road in Iganna on Saturday, the agency said.
The suspects were allegedly transporting 305.6kg of skunk concealed in two pick-up vans.
The NDLEA said the vehicles were being used in a cross-border trafficking operation involving cannabis sourced from Ghana and brought into Nigeria through the Oyo axis.
At the Seme border in Badagry, Lagos, five suspects were also arrested in connection with the transportation of 420 cartons of nitrous oxide, commonly known as laughing gas.
The agency put the total weight of the consignment at 1,688.4kg and said two vehicles allegedly used to transport the substance from the border into Lagos were also seized.
The suspects were identified as Kingsley John, 40; John Chibuike Okeke, 44; Lamidi Ismaila, 40; Babatunde Samuel, 42; and Afeesu Idowu, 47.
Beyond arrests and seizures, the NDLEA said its commands and formations across the country continued public awareness activities under its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) campaign during the week.
The agency said the campaign reached schools, worship centres, workplaces and communities despite operational challenges.
Sensitisation programmes were held for students and staff of Community High School in Saki, Oyo State; Auchi College in Auchi, Edo State; Alkali Modibbo Islamic Centre in Dukku, Gombe State; and Junior Arabic Secondary School in Kahu, Kibiya Local Government Area of Kano State.
The NDLEA’s Delta Ports Command also paid a WADA advocacy visit to His Royal Majesty Ogiame Atuwatshe III, the Olu of Warri, in Delta State, among other engagements.
