China-Bound Businessman Excretes 95 Cocaine Pellets at Kano Airport as NDLEA Busts Major Drug Networks Nationwide
A 62-year-old Lagos-based auto spare parts dealer, Nwabueze Nicholas Izueke, has been arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA), Kano, after ingesting 95 wraps of cocaine while attempting to travel to China.
Izueke was apprehended on Saturday, January 31, 2026, during the outward clearance of passengers scheduled to fly to China via Addis Ababa on Ethiopian Airlines flight ET940. A routine body scan conducted by NDLEA operatives confirmed the presence of illicit drugs in his system, after which he was placed under close medical observation.
According to the NDLEA, the suspect subsequently excreted a total of 95 jumbo-sized pellets of cocaine, weighing 1.589 kilograms, in seven rounds. During interrogation, Izueke, who claimed to be involved in clothing and auto spare parts business in Lagos, confessed that he ventured into drug trafficking to raise funds to complete a residential building project in his hometown of Iwollo, Enugu State.
The arrest at the Kano airport formed part of a series of coordinated nationwide operations by the NDLEA, which led to multiple seizures and arrests across several states.
In the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), operatives recovered 627.7 kilograms of skunk, a potent strain of cannabis, from a makeshift warehouse located within Fums Plaza, Kubwa. In a related operation, attempts to smuggle consignments of methamphetamine concealed in MP3 speakers from Enugu to Abuja and Kaduna were foiled on Friday, February 6. The drugs were intercepted in a commercial bus in Abuja. A follow-up operation in Zuba led to the arrest of Ebube Okeke, owner of one of the consignments containing 173 grams of methamphetamine, while Evans Ugwu, Mohammed Eze Arinze and Friday Michael were arrested in Kaduna on Saturday, February 7, as they arrived to collect a second consignment weighing 28 grams.
Similarly, NDLEA operatives at the Dan-Anacha patrol point in Gassol Local Government Area of Taraba State intercepted a suspect, Yusuf Abubakar, 32, on Friday, February 6. The suspect was conveying packs of Hollandia yoghurt from Lagos to Mubi, Adamawa State. A search of the consignments revealed wraps of methamphetamine concealed in some of the yoghurt packs, with a total weight of 1.8 kilograms.
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In Oyo State, the NDLEA arrested a 29-year-old Beninoise national, Shuaibu Abdulrahman, at Ibudo-Igboho village, Sooro Kishi, on Thursday, February 5, where 149.6 kilograms of skunk hidden inside rice shafts were recovered. In another operation in Ibadan, a suspect identified as Adeniyi Adeola, popularly known as “Prince,” was arrested at Foko, Agbeni Market on Wednesday, February 4. Recovered from his truck marked BDJ 767 YC were 10,820 ampoules of pentazocine injections and 117,820 capsules of tramadol.
The agency also dismantled a major synthetic drug production facility in Ibadan, where a notorious drug kingpin, Jimoh Nurudeen, 40, was arrested on Saturday, February 7, at the Badeku area alongside his accomplice, Ogundipe Yusuf, 27. Items recovered include eight litres of precursor chemicals, 14 grams of skunk, other materials used in the production of “Colorado” (synthetic cannabis), ₦7,408,400 in cash, and two vehicles—a Mercedes-Benz SUV with registration number ABC 832 AZ and a Toyota Highlander marked RBC 243 BS.
In Kwara State, NDLEA operatives intercepted a fuel tanker travelling from Lagos to Maiduguri, Borno State, on Saturday, February 7. A search of the tanker led to the discovery of 395,400 capsules of tramadol concealed within the truck, while the driver was taken into custody for further investigation.
Elsewhere, a couple, Izuchukwu Azubuike, 37, and Ifunaya Mmadueke, 32, were arrested in Umuaka, Njaba Local Government Area of Imo State with 203 kilograms of skunk. In Ondo State, operatives recovered 420 kilograms of skunk hidden in a bush at Ikun Akoko on Friday, February 6.
In Lagos, operatives of the NDLEA Marine Command seized 31 wraps of cocaine concealed in a handbag from a suspect, Eze Nodebechi Austin, upon his arrival from Côte d’Ivoire by boat at Yekeme, Badagry. Another suspect, Adekunle Oluwatosin Olajide, was arrested on Lagos Island on Wednesday, February 4, with 3.6 kilograms of Canadian Loud and Colorado. Similarly, in Enugu, a drug dealer, Emeka Okeke, 37, was arrested at his hideout on Akuruka Street, Asata, Ezeagu, where various quantities of skunk, methamphetamine, cocaine, molly, and ₦457,700 in cash were recovered.
Meanwhile, the NDLEA said its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation campaigns continued nationwide over the past week. The campaigns included enlightenment lectures in secondary schools in Anambra, Oyo and Lagos States, as well as advocacy visits to traditional rulers, including the Emir of Suleja in Niger State.
Commending the officers involved in the operations across Kano, Lagos, FCT, Taraba, Oyo, Kwara, Imo, Ondo and other states, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), urged personnel nationwide to sustain the current level of professionalism and commitment in both drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction efforts.
The agency reaffirmed its resolve to intensify its crackdown on drug trafficking networks and protect communities across the country from the dangers of illicit drugs.
By PRNigeria
