Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have thwarted multiple attempts by drug trafficking syndicates to smuggle illicit substances concealed in carton walls, winter jackets, and body cream containers through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport and a Lagos-based courier firm.
According to a statement issued on Sunday by the agency’s spokesman, Femi Babafemi, two consignments bound for Italy were intercepted at the Lagos airport, leading to the arrest of suspects linked to the shipments.
One of the suspects, 37-year-old Friday Ehianuka, was apprehended on Friday, March 20, 2026, while attempting to board an Ethiopian Airlines flight to Rome. He was found with 2,698 pills of tramadol (225mg) hidden inside containers of skin-lightening body cream packed in his luggage.
Babafemi said Ehianuka, a resident of Milan, admitted he was promised payment in euros upon successful delivery of the drugs.
In a separate operation on Wednesday, March 18, NDLEA officers intercepted another passenger, Christian Agbonhese, at the airport’s departure hall as he attempted to board a Lufthansa flight to Milan. A search of his luggage revealed 28,470 pills of opioids, including tramadol and tapentadol, concealed inside two large winter jackets.
The agency also recorded breakthroughs outside the airport. At a Lagos courier firm, operatives intercepted two parcels containing 1kg of “Loud,” a potent strain of cannabis, shipped from the United States. Another consignment—158 grams of methamphetamine—was discovered hidden within carton walls en route to New Zealand.
Across the country, NDLEA operations led to multiple arrests and significant seizures. In Kano State, two suspects were arrested with a combined 198kg of skunk. In Lagos, officers recovered 21,737 bottles of codeine-based syrup during a raid in the Otto, Ijora area, while an additional 8,380 bottles were seized on the Third Mainland Bridge.
Further recoveries included 97.5kg of skunk in Edo State and 91,840 pills of tramadol concealed in a commercial bus intercepted along the Gwagwalada Expressway in the Federal Capital Territory.
In Oyo and Kaduna states, operatives seized large quantities of tramadol and other opioids, while arrests in Taraba and Adamawa states led to the recovery of tens of thousands of tramadol capsules and over 80kg of the substance.
The NDLEA added that its commands nationwide intensified sensitisation campaigns under the War Against Drug Abuse initiative across schools, religious centres, and local communities.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the agency, Buba Marwa, commended officers across various commands for the arrests and seizures, urging them to sustain ongoing efforts in combating drug trafficking nationwide.
