By Omoyeni Ojeifo
From methamphetamine hidden in breakfast cereals at Lagos airport to an illegal firearms factory in Kaduna, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has recorded a series of operational breakthroughs, arresting suspects and seizing illicit drugs and ammunition across several states.
The operations also led to the arrest of an American professional basketball player over 33.95kg of cannabis, while a 56-year-old Nigerian returning from South Africa was apprehended with 25.05kg of methamphetamine allegedly concealed in assorted cereal packs.
NDLEA Director, Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, provided details of the operations in an emailed statement to PerSecondNews on Sunday.
The methamphetamine suspect, identified as Omokan Isaac Babatope, whose real name is Chinedu Onwude, was arrested on Wednesday, November 11, at the arrival hall of Terminal II of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos.
A search of his two travelling boxes led to the recovery of 25 parcels of a white crystalline substance weighing 25.05kg, which tested positive for methamphetamine.
The substance had been carefully concealed inside packs of assorted breakfast cereals and cereal-based food products to evade security screening.
The 56-year-old suspect, who holds Nigerian and South African passports, has reportedly lived in South Africa for more than 24 years.
During preliminary interrogation, he confessed to adopting the identity Omokan Isaac Babatope after allegedly using forged documents to gain entry into South Africa.
He further disclosed that he had continued using the assumed identity and was contracted by a South Africa-based man, Obiora Okoye, to deliver the consignment in Nigeria for 20,000 South African Rands.
In another interdiction at the same airport on Wednesday, November 11, NDLEA operatives arrested a 28-year-old American citizen, Greene Da’monte Khiree, over a 33.95kg shipment of Loud, a potent strain of cannabis, imported from Thailand.
The suspect arrived in Lagos aboard an Emirates Airline flight from Thailand through Dubai and was placed under discreet surveillance following credible intelligence.
He was subsequently observed abandoning his two checked-in bags before attempting to leave the airport with only his carry-on luggage.
He was apprehended at the airport car park, while a search of the abandoned bags, both bearing his name tag, revealed 16 parcels of Loud in each bag, bringing the total to 32 parcels weighing 33.95kg.
A tracking device was also recovered from the luggage.
The suspect, a native of Savannah, Georgia, United States, reportedly claimed he had lived in Thailand since October 2025, where he plays professional basketball.
He told investigators that he travelled to Nigeria on holiday to build networks for his basketball career.
However, a forensic examination of his mobile phone reportedly revealed information pointing to his knowledge of and involvement in the drug trafficking operation.
Still in Lagos, operatives on Tuesday, November 10, arrested a 33-year-old man, Taiwo Adebayo Aderoju, during an intelligence-led operation at Ebute Metta, recovering 119.71kg of cannabis sativa from him.
Another joint operation in the Ajah area on Saturday, November 14, led to the recovery of 78.8kg of cannabis, 2.5 litres of skuchies, 6.8 litres of codeine syrup, 23 grams of Rohypnol, 478 grams of tramadol, 10.6kg of nitrous oxide and 714 grams of pregabalin.
The substances were recovered from a silver Toyota Sienna abandoned by a suspect who fled after sighting the operatives.
Elsewhere in Kaduna State, NDLEA operatives on Monday, November 9, raided Sabon Garin Kangin, where they uncovered a factory used for the local fabrication of firearms and arrested a 45-year-old man, Sagiru Musa.
Items recovered from the facility included 17 locally made Dane guns, two pistols, 25 Dane gun pipes and other materials used in manufacturing firearms.
In a separate operation, officers on patrol at Jere, along the Abuja-Kaduna Expressway, intercepted a 31-year-old woman, Tabara Dauda, on Friday, November 13, while conveying 196 rounds of AK-47 live ammunition and N675,000 cash.
Similarly, a 30-year-old man, Samson Chibuike Andebe, was arrested at Grace Land, Sabon Gari Local Government Area, on Wednesday, November 11, with 3,840 tablets of tramadol 225mg weighing 2.5kg.
Another raid at Gonin-Gora area of Kaduna on Saturday, November 14, led to the recovery of 499.3kg of skunk from two suspects, Celestine Chime, 34, and Chibueze Christ, 36.
In Ondo State, operatives on Tuesday, November 10, arrested two suspects, Victor William, 42, and Akeem Azeez, 27, at Olabi village bush after they allegedly brought out bags of cannabis for sale.
The suspects subsequently led the officers to their storage facility, where 50 bags of cannabis sativa weighing 560kg were recovered.
Another operation at a cannabis farm in Ipele Forest on Friday, November 13, resulted in the arrest of three suspects, Godwin Benson, 30; Muhammed Awwal, 34; and James Timothy, 18.
The operatives recovered 122kg of the psychoactive substance during the operation.
In Delta State, a 43-year-old woman, Esther Igba, was arrested at Alihame, Agbor, Ika South Local Government Area, on Thursday, November 12, with 255.670kg of cannabis sativa and 1.5kg of cannabis seeds.
Earlier, on Tuesday, November 10, operatives arrested 25-year-old Aaron Thomas, popularly known as Ibori, at Oguato, Ughelli South Local Government Area, after trailing him for more than six months.
Described by the agency as a major illicit drug distributor operating a notorious bush bar, Thomas was arrested with 360 grams of cannabis, 12.7 litres of codeine syrup, 500 grams of tramadol 100mg, 90 grams of tramadol 200mg, 215 grams of swinol and 135 grams of Molly, also known as MDMA.
In Osun State, two suspects, Eze Chidiebere, 23, and Nwaoge Ugochukwu, 24, were arrested with 86kg of cannabis sativa during a farm destruction operation at Owena Forest Reserve.
In a related operation within the same forest reserve, operatives arrested 40-year-old Ugwu Chukwuemeka with 28kg of dried cannabis and 21kg of fresh cannabis leaves.
The agency also destroyed his 0.855-hectare cannabis farm, estimated to contain 2,137.5kg of the plant.
Meanwhile, in Edo State, NDLEA operatives on Tuesday, November 10, raided Jamila Street, Ikpoba Hill, Benin City, following weeks of surveillance on illicit drug activities within the metropolis.
The operation led to the arrest of a 39-year-old woman, Blessing Chukwudi, with 22 compressed parcels of Loud weighing 14kg, 65 grams of Colorado and 73 grams of methamphetamine.
Beyond the arrests and seizures, the agency’s commands and formations across the country sustained their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation activities in schools, worship centres, workplaces and communities during the week.
The NDLEA Chairman/CEO, retired Brig.-Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa, commended officers and men of the MMIA, Lagos, Kaduna, Ondo, Delta, Osun and Edo Commands, for their vigilance and professionalism.
According to him, the interception of methamphetamine concealed in breakfast cereal packs demonstrated that no concealment method, however ingenious, could defeat the resolve of the agency’s operatives.
He pointed that the discovery of the firearms fabrication factory in Kaduna further highlighted the connection between illicit drugs and violent crime.
Marwa urged officers across the country to sustain efforts towards reducing both the supply of illicit drugs and the demand for them.
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