Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), have arrested another leader of a drug syndicate that they smashed twenty months ago and from which illicit drugs worth billions of naira were recovered.
The anti-narcotics agency’s Head of Media and Adcocacy, Mr. Femi Babafemi, made this known on Sunday.
According to him, the suspect, Shodunke Yetunde Simbiat, had been underground since May 2024 until her arrest in her Lagos home where additional 23.50 kilograms of the class A drug were recovered from her children’s room.
The kingpin, Bolanle Lookman Dauda and his queen, Olayinka Toheebat Dauda were arrested on Saturday 25th May 2024 by operatives of a special operations unit of NDLEA at Ibiye, along Lagos-Badagry expressway while attempting to cross the land border to deliver the consignment in Ghana.
At the point of their arrest, 42 blocks of cocaine weighing 47.5 kilograms were found on them. A swift follow up operation in their residence at Plot 24/25 OPIC extension, Petedo road, Agbara, Ogun state, led to the recovery of additional eight blocks of the same drug weighing 10kg, bringing the total weight of the consignment seized from the couple to 57.5 kilograms.
A continued follow up intelligence and surveillance on the trans-border drug trafficking organization (DTO) by operatives determined to arrest every member of the syndicate, led to the identification of the 39-year-old female stash keeper, Simbiat as a key member of the DTO. She was then trailed to her 31 Onasanya street, Surulere, Lagos residence on Tuesday 9th December 2025.
“A thorough search of her home led to the discovery of blocks of cocaine weighing 23.50 kilograms concealed in a black suit case recovered from her children’s room. She admitted ownership of the drug consignment worth over N5billion in street value”, Babafemi stated.
In another development, NDLEA operatives attached to terminal II departure hall of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja Lagos on Thursday 18th December, intercepted a 36-year-old businessman Nwanwene Robinson Destiny with a total of 1,020 pills of tramadol 225mg and tapentadol 200mg concealed in his luggage while attempting to board a Royal Air-Maroc flight to Milan, Italy where he’s based. He claimed the successful trafficking of the opioids to Italy would have fetched him Two Hundred Euros (€200.00) from the person he was to deliver them to.
In Oyo state, NDLEA operatives on Friday 19thDecember recovered 125,000 capsules of tramadol and 1,800 ampoules of pentazocine injection in a Toyota Hiace bus marked XD 592 AWL along Lagos-Ibadan expressway, while two suspects: Ogunlade Kazeem, 54, and Adeleke Ismail, 30, were arrested with 185.4 kilograms of skunk at Challenge motor park, Ibadan, on Wednesday 17th December.
A total of 405kg skunk was seized when NDLEA operatives raided Owena/Ijesha forest in Osun state where a suspect Charles James, 45, was nabbed on Friday 19th December, while another suspect Jamilu Zakari, 42, was arrested with 14,960 pills of tramadol 225mg at tollgate, along Abuja – Kaduna highway same day. The consignment of opioids was concealed in two kolanut sacks (huhun goro) coming from Abuja to Gusau, Zamfara state.
NDLEA officers across all commands and formations continued their War Against Drug Abuse, (WADA) sensitization activities across in schools, worship centres, work places and communities among others in the past week. These include: WADA enlightenment lecture to students and staff of secondary schools in Anambra at Women Development Centre, Awka; Youth Craft Village, Malumfashi, Katsina and members of NURTW in Ado Ekiti, Ekiti state, among others.
Commending the officers and men of the various Commands for the arrests and seizures as well as their dexterity, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd) enjoined them and their colleagues across the country to remain extra vigilant during the festive season and ensure that highest standard of professionalism is maintained in all their drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction activities all through the period and beyond.
