NDLEA intercepts Saudi-bound cannabis in palm oil keg, ₦6.98bn tramadol

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency have intercepted a female passenger, Fatimah Ahmad, at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano State, with a gallon of palm oil containing parcels of cannabis weighing 511.75 grammes.

She was arrested during the outward clearance of an Ethiopian Airlines flight to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, via Addis Ababa.

The incident occurred on Friday, October 16, 2026, when Fatimah told operatives that the gallon was given to her by her cousin, Abubakar Yahaya, who was promptly arrested at the airport car park.

The NDLEA operatives also discovered 8,725kg of powdered tramadol worth over N6.98 billion in street value during a search of a shipment at the Apapa Port in Lagos State, according to the agency’s Director, Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, in a statement issued on Sunday.

At the Kano airport, NDLEA officers on Friday, 16th October 2026, intercepted a female passenger, Fatimah Ahmad, with a gallon of palm oil containing parcels of cannabis weighing 511.75 grammes during the outward clearance of an Ethiopian Airlines flight to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, via Addis Ababa. Fatimah told operatives the gallon was given to her by her cousin, Abubakar Yahaya, who was promptly arrested at the airport car park,” the agency stated.

In a series of operations across the country, the agency also seized thousands of kilogrammes of cannabis and large quantities of opioids in Lagos, Edo, Ondo, Bauchi, Kano and Kaduna states, arresting dozens of suspects.

“Following a joint examination with the Customs Service and other agencies at the APM terminals in Apapa, Lagos, NDLEA operatives on 2nd October uncovered a large shipment of powdered tramadol from India, declared as maize starch.

“A confirmatory test at the NDLEA forensic laboratory showed the cargo to be tramadol hydrochloride powder. When it was separated from its concealment on Wednesday, 14th October, it came to 349 bags with a gross weight of 8,725kg, worth over N6.98 billion.

“In a separate operation at the Tincan port in Lagos on Monday, 12th October, NDLEA officers, in the course of a joint examination of a container with Customs and others, discovered 55kg of Canadian Loud worth N165 million. The drugs were packed in brown cartons and hidden inside a Toyota Sienna vehicle conveyed in the 40-foot container.”