The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has smashed two major cocaine cartels responsible for six United Kingdom-bound consignments of the illicit substance, arresting the kingpin, Alhaji Hammed Taofeek Ode, and five other suspects.
The agency said the breakthrough was achieved through a series of intelligence-led operations conducted across Lagos and other states over a three-week period.
NDLEA spokesman, Mr Femi Babafemi, disclosed that the operation began on 16 September 2025, when operatives at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, intercepted 174 parcels of cocaine weighing 13.40 kilogrammes concealed in cocoa butter body cream containers.
The cargo agent linked to the shipment was arrested, leading investigators to Ode, who had only returned to Nigeria in 2024 after spending more than 27 years in Europe.
According to Babafemi, further operations between 26 September and 2 October uncovered additional cocaine hidden in hair cream, stainless cups and crayfish packages, weighing a combined 7.1 kilogrammes.
Among those apprehended were a furniture maker, Mr Smith David Korede, and two others identified as Mr Ogunbiyi Oluseye Taiwo and Mr Popoola Francis Olumuyiwa.
Ode, described as a self-styled businessman and estate developer, admitted ownership of one of the seized consignments valued at over N150 million.
In a parallel operation, NDLEA officers also intercepted 6.3 kilogrammes of Loud, a potent strain of cannabis, smuggled from Thailand and concealed in bedsheets and hibiscus flowers. Other raids across the country led to the recovery of large quantities of tramadol, pregabalin, codeine syrup, synthetic cannabis known as Colorado, and skunk.
Babafemi said the agency, in collaboration with the Nigeria Customs Service, seized 290,450 pills of tramadol and pregabalin in Kano from one suspect, Mr Sa’adu Ali. In Lagos, a notorious dealer known as “SammyBless” was arrested in Lekki with 550 grammes of Colorado, while officers recovered 109 kilogrammes of skunk and 20 bottles of codeine in Mushin. In Kwara State, 27,700 tramadol pills were recovered from one Mr Salisu Abubakar.
In Kaduna, over 532 kilogrammes of skunk were seized in Kudandan and along the Kaduna–Zaria road. In Ogun, 112 kilogrammes of skunk and tramadol were recovered in Isheri, while in Osun, a 14,000-kilogramme skunk plantation was destroyed in the Owena/Ijesha forest reserve. Similar raids in Edo State led to the destruction of over 10,800 kilogrammes of skunk on four farms and the interception of another 244.5 kilogrammes in Igbanke.
The NDLEA Chairman, Brigadier-General Mohammed Buba Marwa (Retd), commended officers for their “tenacity, professionalism, and balanced approach,” describing the series of operations as a major blow to organised drug trafficking networks.
“These successful operations should serve as a warning that NDLEA will not relent until the menace of substance abuse and illicit trafficking is eliminated,” Marwa declared.
He added that the agency had also intensified its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) campaign across several states, including Adamawa, Katsina, Niger, Lagos, and Imo, with sensitisation programmes held in schools, markets, worship centres, and workplaces.