The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has recorded a series of major breakthroughs in its nationwide operations against illicit drug trafficking, including the arrest of a Brazil-based Nigerian businessman at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos, with cocaine concealed in his private parts and footwear.
The agency disclosed that the suspect, Uche Franklin Onyekwere, was apprehended during inward passenger clearance on Thursday, January 29, 2026, after arriving in Nigeria on a South African Airways flight from Brazil via Johannesburg. Onyekwere, 47, was said to have been acting on behalf of an international drug trafficking network.
In a statement issued on Sunday, February 1, 2026, the NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, said the arrest followed processed intelligence that prompted operatives to subject the suspect to a detailed screening.
According to Babafemi, the intelligence-led operation led to a full body scan, which confirmed the presence of foreign objects suspected to be illicit drugs concealed on the suspect’s body. A subsequent strip search uncovered a large wrap of a white powdery substance tied around Onyekwere’s right thigh. Further examination revealed two additional wraps hidden inside the soles of a pair of flat shoes he was wearing.
Laboratory analysis later confirmed the substance to be cocaine. In total, three large wraps of the illicit drug, weighing 1.60 kilograms, were recovered from the suspect’s body and footwear.
During preliminary interrogation, Onyekwere reportedly admitted purchasing the cocaine in Brazil with the intention of selling it in Nigeria. He told investigators that the proceeds were meant to raise capital for his business and to finance the naming ceremony of his newly born child.
Babafemi disclosed that the suspect resides on Rua Ever, Mulariuha, São Paulo, Brazil, and has lived in the South American country since 2008. He also confessed to running a toy business in Brazil for about nine years before venturing into drug trafficking.
In a related operation at the Tincan Seaport in Lagos, NDLEA officers, working in joint examination with the Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies, intercepted a massive consignment of illicit drugs imported into the country. Babafemi said the operatives discovered 55 jumbo bags of Canadian Loud, a highly potent strain of cannabis, with a combined weight of 1,183 kilograms.
The consignment, which originated from Montreal, Canada, was concealed inside a container. The drugs were reportedly hidden within a Hyundai SUV and a Toyota Matrix car to evade detection. The seizure was made on Wednesday, January 28, during a routine but intelligence-backed inspection of imported containers.
In Niger State, NDLEA operatives acting on credible intelligence intercepted a long haul truck along the Dei-Dei–Abuja Expressway in the early hours of Tuesday, January 26. The truck, with registration number T 31589 LA, was found to be transporting a massive quantity of illicit drugs disguised as legitimate cargo.
Three suspects, identified as Andy Chidogu, 49; Kenneth Ogene, 45; and Sadiq Olanrewaju, 27, were arrested in connection with the operation. A search of the vehicle led to the recovery of 176 bags of skunk, a strain of cannabis, weighing 2,735 kilograms, as well as one kilogram of Colorado, a synthetic cannabis.
Investigations revealed that Ogene, the truck driver, had departed Lagos on January 23 with 800 bags of flour destined for Ekpoma, Edo State, where he arrived the following day. It was later discovered that he negotiated the transportation of the illicit drugs from Ekpoma for a fee of N1.7 million.
In Edo State, NDLEA operatives also recorded significant success. On Tuesday, January 27, officers arrested one Shaibu Yusuf along the Auchi–Abuja Expressway. Yusuf was allegedly attempting to secure a vehicle to transport 66 bags of skunk, concealed in charcoal sacks and weighing 792 kilograms, to Katsina State.
In another major operation in the state on Wednesday, January 28, NDLEA officers, with support from personnel of the Nigerian Army, raided a large cannabis farm at Ebora Camp, Ilushi, in Esan South East Local Government Area. During the raid, over 4,063.675 kilograms of skunk cultivated on more than 1.6 hectares of farmland were destroyed. In addition, 328 kilograms of processed cannabis and seeds were recovered from the site.
Four suspects, identified as Jeremiah Nwodeh, 46; Chukwudi Pius, 33; Pius Ogaba, 46; and Onora Kwene, 35, were arrested in connection with the illegal farm.
In Anambra State, Babafemi said NDLEA operatives on Wednesday, January 28, intercepted a cement-laden truck at Upper Iweka, Onitsha, while it was en route to Nkpor. A thorough search revealed that bags of cement were used to conceal 345.2 kilograms of skunk. The drugs were linked to one Abum Okeke, 42, who was among the three occupants of the truck at the time of arrest.
Further operations were recorded in Ondo State, where two suspects, Tunde Ogundele, 39, and Soji Elegbelye, 46, were arrested on Monday, January 26, at Eleyewo community in Akure North Local Government Area. The arrest followed the seizure of 473 kilograms of skunk from the suspects.
On the same day in Kano State, NDLEA officers arrested Abdullahi Usman, 45, along Murtala Mohammed Way with 12,500 ampoules of pentazocine injection, a controlled pharmaceutical drug often abused for non-medical purposes. Another suspect, Musa Shuaibu, 42, was arrested on Tuesday, January 27, in the Gaya area of Kano, where 4,390 pills of tramadol were recovered.
In Lagos, NDLEA operatives also arrested one Oragwan Ekene on Friday, January 30, at Okeyson Park, Alaba. He was allegedly conveying 15.5 kilograms of skunk to Onitsha, Anambra State.
Meanwhile, at the Seme border in Badagry, NDLEA officers on Tuesday, January 27, recovered 3.5 kilograms of skunk concealed in a sound system and two cereal packs found in the luggage of Omang Peter Edward, who was arriving from Cotonou, Benin Republic.
The NDLEA reiterated its commitment to dismantling drug trafficking networks across Nigeria, warning traffickers and their collaborators that no concealment method or route would be beyond the reach of intelligence-led enforcement operations.
