Nigeria: NDLEA intensifies crackdown on drug trafficking
By Zuleihat Owuiye, Mamos Nigeria
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has stepped up its efforts to combat drug trafficking, raiding a Lagos hotel, intercepting international consignments concealed in food items, and apprehending a long-wanted drug kingpin. 60-year-old Okpara Chigozie, a major drug cartel leader who had evaded arrest since 2025 was nabbed at his hideout in Lagos.
During the operation, 7.6 kilograms of cocaine and 900 grams of methamphetamine were recovered from a vehicle driven by Achebe Nnamdi, 51, who was heading to Onitsha, Anambra State. An additional 1.8kg of cocaine and 1.3kg methamphetamine were recovered from Okpara’s residence.
In another operation, a passenger, Omoregie Uyiosa, was arrested at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos with 7,790 pills of tramadol and rohypnol concealed in his luggage. The suspect admitted he intended to sell the drugs abroad.
The NDLEA also intercepted 17 parcels of skunk, a strain of cannabis, weighing 1.70kg, concealed in packs of cereal and bound for Pakistan. A suspect, Chioba Robert Uchenna, who presented the consignment for shipment, was arrested
In Lagos, NDLEA operatives raided the Sarah Sam Hotels on Ogudu Road, Kosofe, where “party drugs” were allegedly being distributed. The facility, run as a family business, was raided after surveillance linked it to suspect Obayemi Oyetade. From his room, officers recovered 1.3kg of chocolate cannabis, 900 grams of cannabis-infused gummies, and 22.9 grams of skunk.
The NDLEA’s operations were not limited to Lagos, as several other arrests and seizures were made in other states, including Kaduna, Kano, Gombe, Borno, Bayelsa, and Abia. The agency’s efforts demonstrate its commitment to tackling the scourge of drug trafficking in Nigeria.
