The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intercepted a major cocaine shipment concealed in imported dry stock fish and arrested key suspects linked to an international drug trafficking network.
According to the agency’s spokesman, Femi Babafemi, the breakthrough followed intelligence on trans-border criminal operations. Acting on the tip-off, operatives of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport Strategic Command carried out a sting operation in Ojo, Lagos, on March 19, 2026.
During the operation, a suspected kingpin, 36-year-old Akputa Dickson Ejike, was arrested with three jumbo bags. A search revealed 237 wraps of cocaine weighing 5.80kg hidden inside the heads of imported dry fish, locally known as “Okporoko.” The illicit consignment was destined for Delhi, India.
In a related operation on March 25, NDLEA officers from the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation intercepted two drug shipments bound for the United Kingdom at a Lagos courier firm. One parcel, originating from Cotonou, contained 1.9kg of methamphetamine concealed in automobile filters, while another held 40 ampoules of morphine sulphate and nine ampoules of fentanyl.
The agency also intensified raids across multiple states. On March 26, operatives of the Special Operations Unit arrested 46-year-old Omolade Abigail Jolayemi, also known as “Iya Ghana,” at her residence in Yaba, Lagos, alongside her associate, Sarah Zainab Agbabiaka. Authorities recovered 135 blocks of cannabis weighing 76.30kg.
On the same day, another suspect, Anayo Lucky Ohabiro, was apprehended in Surulere, Lagos, with 78 blocks of “Ghana Loud” cannabis weighing 41kg.
In Ekiti State, NDLEA operatives arrested an 80-year-old suspect, Oke Samuel, during a raid in Efon-Alaaye, recovering 2.2kg of skunk and a small quantity of methamphetamine. In Ondo State, officers seized 894.72kg of skunk from an uncompleted building in Akure North, linked to suspect Enuwa Kehinde Kingsley.
Further operations led to arrests and seizures across Benue, Edo, and Taraba states, including over 576kg of skunk in Edo and 135kg concealed in animal feed bags in Taraba.
NDLEA Chairman, Mohamed Marwa, commended officers involved in the nationwide operations, praising their commitment to both drug supply reduction and public sensitisation under the agency’s War Against Drug Abuse campa.
