Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested two Togolese nationals and seized large quantities of opioids, cannabis and other illicit substances worth more than ₦3 billion in a series of operations conducted across several states.
The arrests and seizures were recorded during a week-long crackdown on drug trafficking networks operating through land borders, airports, motor parks and other routes used for the movement of controlled substances.
The NDLEA identified the two Togolese nationals as 35-year-old Yinusa Abdulsamad and 33-year-old Fatai Baba. According to the agency, they were arrested on Saturday, September 26, 2026, along the Iganna-Ilero Road in Iganna, Oyo State.
The suspects were allegedly found in possession of 305.6 kilogrammes of skunk, a form of cannabis, concealed in two pickup trucks.
The agency said preliminary investigation indicated that the vehicles were allegedly being used as part of a cross-border trafficking operation through which cannabis sourced from Ghana was transported into Nigeria through the Oyo axis.
The seizure in Oyo State was among several interdiction operations carried out by NDLEA commands during the period under review.
In Lagos, NDLEA operatives at the import shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport uncovered what the agency described as a major shipment of pharmaceutical opioids during a joint examination of three monitored consignments on Tuesday, September 22.
According to the NDLEA, the consignments contained 2.55 million pills comprising Tramaking 225mg, Tramaking 250mg and Royal Tapentadol 250mg.
The agency said the combined gross weight of the pharmaceutical products was 1,640.55 kilogrammes.
The consignments were reportedly imported from India and Bangladesh and arrived in Nigeria through Qatar Airways, RwandAir and Ethiopian Airlines.
The discovery highlights the growing concern surrounding the trafficking of pharmaceutical products that can be abused as narcotic or psychoactive substances. The NDLEA has in recent years intensified its monitoring of cargo shipments at Nigerian airports and other points of entry as part of efforts to prevent the illegal importation and distribution of controlled drugs.
In Bauchi State, NDLEA operatives also intercepted a truck along the Maiduguri bypass and arrested two men identified as 35-year-old Umar Hamidu and 45-year-old Abdulkarim Salihu.
The agency said officers recovered 300 compressed blocks of skunk weighing 262.5 kilogrammes from a specially constructed false-bottom compartment in the truck.
The vehicle, according to the NDLEA, was registered as MUB757 YH.
The concealment of the cannabis in a false compartment suggested an attempt to evade detection during transportation, although the circumstances surrounding the shipment remain subject to investigation by the agency.
In Edo State, NDLEA operatives, working with soldiers, destroyed two cannabis farms at Eko Camp in Ilushi on Wednesday, September 23.
The agency estimated the combined potential yield of the two farms at 1,360.23 kilogrammes.
The destruction of illicit cannabis farms remains one of the strategies employed by the NDLEA to disrupt the supply chain at the production stage. Such operations are aimed at preventing cultivated cannabis from entering the wider illegal drug market.
The agency also reported another operation in Lagos, where officers raided a location on Anifowoshe Street in Mushin on Saturday.
Two suspects, identified as 36-year-old Odumabo Kehinde and 40-year-old Obiekwe Chioma, were arrested during the operation.
NDLEA officials said 3.4 kilogrammes of skunk were recovered from the location.
On the same day, operatives intercepted another suspect, 58-year-old Ugwu Johnson, at the Ebute-Ero motor park.
According to the agency, Johnson was allegedly found with 5.92 kilogrammes of skunk, 2,400 ampoules of pentazocine injection, 8,400 tablets of nitrazepam and 40,000 tablets of tramadol.
The combination of cannabis, pharmaceutical opioids and other controlled substances recovered from the suspect formed part of the agency’s wider enforcement operation in Lagos.
At the Seme border in Badagry, also in Lagos State, NDLEA operatives intercepted five men allegedly transporting a large consignment of nitrous oxide, commonly known as laughing gas.
The suspects were identified as 40-year-old Kingsley John, 44-year-old John Chibuike Okeke, 40-year-old Lamidi Ismaila, 42-year-old Babatunde Samuel and 47-year-old Afeesu Idowu.
The agency said the five men were arrested with 420 cartons of nitrous oxide weighing approximately 1,688.4 kilogrammes.
Two vehicles allegedly used to transport the consignment from the border into Lagos were also seized.
The arrests at Seme form part of the NDLEA’s continuing efforts to monitor Nigeria’s land borders and prevent the movement of controlled and potentially harmful substances into the country.
Nitrous oxide has legitimate medical and industrial applications, but its recreational misuse has raised concerns among law enforcement and health authorities because of the potential risks associated with inhaling the gas.
The series of operations demonstrates the broad range of methods allegedly employed by drug trafficking networks, including the concealment of cannabis in vehicles, the use of cargo consignments for pharmaceutical opioids, cultivation on illicit farms and transportation through motor parks and international borders.
The NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, disclosed the operations in a statement issued on Sunday.
The agency said its operatives would continue to work with other security agencies to disrupt the activities of individuals and networks involved in the production, importation, transportation and distribution of illicit drugs.
The NDLEA has increasingly relied on intelligence-led operations, surveillance and collaboration with other security agencies to intercept drug shipments before they reach intended destinations.
The latest operations covered Oyo, Lagos, Bauchi and Edo states and involved different categories of controlled substances, ranging from cannabis and pharmaceutical opioids to nitrous oxide.
The agency’s account also indicates that some of the interdictions occurred at strategic points within the country’s drug supply chain, including an international airport, a land border, highways, motor parks and suspected cannabis cultivation sites.
While the NDLEA has announced the arrests and seizures, the suspects remain entitled to due process under Nigerian law. Allegations arising from the operations will have to be established through the appropriate investigative and judicial processes.
The agency said investigations into the various seizures and arrests would continue, with the objective of identifying other individuals or networks that may be connected to the trafficking activities.
The latest crackdown comes as Nigerian authorities continue to confront the trafficking and abuse of illicit drugs and pharmaceutical substances, with enforcement agencies targeting both domestic distribution networks and international supply routes.
