NDLEA intercepts N5bn drugs at ports, arrests Milan-bound businessman

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency have intercepted container consignments of Loud, a strong strain of cannabis and codeine-based syrup worth over N5 billion.

The agency noted that the operatives at the Apapa, Tin Can Island and Onne seaports made the arrest, following months of intelligence and tracking the movement of the shipments from their original ports of origin.

According to a statement issued on Sunday by the NDLEA Director, Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, a search of one of the containers yielded 161 parcels of Thai Loud weighing 124kg, worth N372 million, concealed in two refrigerators and two cartons at the Apapa port.

At Tin Can Island, 2,595 parcels of Canadian Loud weighing 1,297.5kg were recovered, while at the Onne port, 40 packs of Loud weighing 22kg and 109,600 bottles of codeine-based cough syrup weighing 16,440kg — with a combined street value of N833.2 million.

The statement read, “At the Apapa port in Lagos, NDLEA officers, acting on intelligence, subjected two containers from Bangkok, Thailand, to 100 per cent examination with men of Customs and other stakeholders. A search of one of the containers on Saturday, 3rd September, yielded 161 parcels of Thai Loud weighing 124kg, worth N372,000,000, concealed in two refrigerators and two cartons.

“At the Tincan Island port in Lagos, NDLEA operatives on Tuesday, 29th September, conducted a joint examination of a watch-listed container from Montreal, Canada, with Customs and other stakeholders. As a result, a total of 2,595 parcels of Canadian Loud weighing 1,297.5kg were concealed in a Toyota Sienna and a Hyundai Elantra, with 24 blue drums and six jumbo bags in the container. The consignment was worth over N3.8 billion in street value.

“At the Onne port in Rivers State, two containers watch-listed by NDLEA based on processed intelligence were subjected to joint examination with Customs and other security agencies, during which 40 packs of Loud weighing 22kg were found hidden in a travelling bag and three of five vehicles (Toyota Matrix, Toyota Corolla and Hyundai Elantra) shipped in one of the containers, while the second container held 109,600 bottles of codeine-based cough syrup weighing 16,440kg. The container had left India for Saudi Arabia, where the history of its origin was deleted, to avoid being targeted. The codeine and Loud consignments have a combined street value of N833,200,000.”

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In a related development, the anti-narcotics agency disclosed that its operatives arrested a Milan-bound businessman, Philip Tunde, with 4.80 kilogrammes of cocaine concealed in the soles of shoes and the railings of travel bags at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos State.

Tunde, 28, was arrested on Sunday, September 27, 2026, “at the joint screening point, Terminal 2 of the Lagos airport ahead of his Royal Air Maroc flight to Milan, Italy.

“A thorough search by NDLEA operatives led to the recovery of 16 parcels of white powdery substance hidden in the soles of eight pairs of trainers and canvas shoes, plus 195 wraps of the same substance concealed in the railings of four travelling bags. The substances tested positive for cocaine, with a combined weight of 4.80kg.”

The agency noted that during the interview, Tunde “claimed he paid N16 million in cash for the cocaine in the shoes, while the consignment in the bags was meant for delivery to his partner in Italy. He said he raised the money from compensation paid to him for an injury at a plastic manufacturing company in Italy, in which he lost the tips of two fingers.”

In other nationwide operations, the agency said it destroyed 20,234kg of skunk on 8.0936 hectares of cannabis farm in Area 4, Ife South Local Government Area of Osun State. There,

“In Lagos, NDLEA operatives on Monday 28th September raided an unoccupied compound at Divine Estate, Ago Palace, where they recovered 209,000 tablets of tramadol, while a 23-year-old Ekundayo Taiwo, was nabbed on Wednesday 30th September in a follow-up operation at Ladipo Spare Parts Market following the seizure of 61 grams of Colorado, a synthetic strain of cannabis and 24 grams of methamphetamine hidden in a bottle of an energy drink as a waybill package from a commercial bus driver along the Lagos-Ibadan expressway the previous day,” among others.

In his remarks, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig-Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.) commended the operatives on the various successful operations and called for a sustained war against drug trafficking networks,