NDLEA Busts Drug Cartel, Arrests Kingpins, Seizes N6.4bn Worth of Narcotics
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has dismantled an international drug trafficking syndicate operating across Nigeria, the United Kingdom, Brazil, Australia, and the United Arab Emirates, arresting three of its leaders and intercepting narcotics valued at over N5.3 billion bound for Sydney, Australia.
The cartel was exposed after NDLEA officers at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, intercepted 76 cartons of textile materials destined for Australia on August 26, 2025. A search revealed 17.9kg of cocaine concealed within the fabrics and laced with local charms allegedly intended to evade detection. The seizure, estimated to be worth 5.3 million Australian dollars (N5.3bn), led to the arrest of freight agent and syndicate member, Olashupo Michael Oladimeji.
Subsequent investigations unmasked two other cartel leaders: Muaezee Ademola Ogunbiyi, arrested in Ikeja on September 3, and Shola Adegoke, apprehended during a raid at a packaging house in Ikeja GRA. Recovered items included 21 parcels of Canadian Loud, a pump-action rifle with cartridges, and two vehicles— a Toyota Venza and a Range Rover SUV. Adegoke was previously jailed in the UK for methamphetamine trafficking before his deportation to Nigeria in 2024, while Ogunbiyi had served a 14-year prison term in the UK for murder.
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Authorities identified the syndicate’s ringleader, Adebisi Ademola Omoyele, also known as Mr. Bee, who is reportedly coordinating operations from Dubai.
Beyond Lagos, NDLEA operatives intensified their crackdown nationwide. At the Port Harcourt Ports Complex in Rivers State, 160,200 bottles of codeine syrup worth N1.1bn were discovered in a container of ceramic sanitary wares. In Abuja, a 32-year-old dispatch rider was caught with 3.1kg of Colorado. Multiple raids in Lagos led to the seizure of 625kg of cannabis strains from traffickers, including a couple arrested with 24.4kg of skunk in Ajegunle.
In Kogi, operatives intercepted 53.4kg of skunk concealed in a car, while in Niger State, a Toyota Hilux transporting 342kg of cannabis was seized. In Taraba, 7.5 hectares of cannabis farmland, weighing 18,750kg, were destroyed, with two suspects arrested at the site. Other arrests and seizures were recorded in Edo, Anambra, and Kaduna states.
Meanwhile, NDLEA continued its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitization programs across the country, engaging communities, workplaces, religious centres, and traditional institutions in advocacy campaigns.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd), commended officers involved in the operations for their commitment and urged them to sustain the agency’s balanced approach to drug control.
By PRNigeria
