NDLEA intercepts Italy-based Businessman with 98 Cocaine wraps in Enugu

By Precious Mark

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a 30-year-old Italy-based businessman, Joseph Cyril, at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport in Enugu for ingesting 98 wraps of cocaine weighing 1.510 kilograms.

This was disclosed in a statement released by the NDLEA on Sunday.

According to the NDLEA, the suspect was apprehended in the departure hall during the outward clearance of passengers on an Ethiopian Airlines flight bound for Italy via Addis Ababa and France.

Following his arrest, Cyril was placed under excretion observation, during which he expelled all 98 wraps of the illicit drug.

Investigations revealed that Cyril arrived in Nigeria from Italy on July 13, 2026, and ingested the cocaine at a hotel in Awka, Anambra State, before traveling to Enugu to catch his flight.

In his statement to officers, Cyril claimed he had been doing business in Italy for years and accepted the trafficking offer for a fee of €3,500 to raise funds to relocate his family to Germany.

In Lagos State, anti-narcotics officers attached to courier and logistics companies thwarted multiple export attempts.

Operatives intercepted 1.2 kilograms of cocaine concealed inside 25 phone chargers destined for Saudi Arabia, while another 500 grams of cocaine hidden in the false bottom of a backpack bound for Italy was seized.

A separate consignment containing 2.3 kilograms of synthetic cannabis originating from the United States was also confiscated.

Interdictions on major transportation routes and in warehouses yielded further massive recoveries across several regions.

Operatives along the Akure–Ilesha expressway intercepted a truck carrying 1,633 kilograms of skunk hidden inside bags of rice chaff, arresting Buba Jamilu and Sanusi Ibrahim.

In Oyo State, a raid on a drug warehouse in Elebure village resulted in the recovery of 731.03 kilograms of illicit substances and the arrest of 57-year-old Felicia Thompson, while her partner, Thompson Vincent Nwaka, remains at large.

Additional operations in Edo State yielded 604.5 kilograms of skunk recovered at Ewe Luleha in Owan West Local Government Area, while a raid in Osisioma, Abia State, led to the arrest of Chibuike Charles and the seizure of seven kilograms of skunk.

In Badagry, Lagos State, a wanted drug dealer named Adome Claude Sikuru was apprehended after a three-month manhunt, with 88.5 kilograms of skunk recovered from his possession.

At the Tincan Port Complex in Lagos, a joint container examination by NDLEA officers and Customs officials uncovered 73 cartons containing 442 packets of cannabis-infused cookies and gummies weighing 309.4 kilograms inside a 40-foot container, leading to the arrest of suspect Larry Nnaji.

Parallel to enforcement actions, commands across the country continued War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitization lectures in schools, places of worship, and academic institutions to strengthen community drug prevention efforts.

The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the agency, retired Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa, commended the officers for their operational successes and encouraged them to sustain the balanced control strategy nationwide.