Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have intercepted a major cocaine consignment concealed in the heads of imported dry stockfish, arresting a key syndicate member linked to international trafficking routes, particularly to India.
The anti-narcotics agency said the breakthrough followed intelligence on the group’s trans-border operations, prompting a coordinated sting by the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Strategic Command in Lagos on Thursday, 19 March 2026.
During the operation in Ojo, officers arrested 36-year-old Akputa Dickson Ejike with three jumbo bags containing 237 wraps of cocaine weighing 5.8kg, hidden inside “okporoko” stockfish heads and bound for Delhi.
In a separate operation, NDLEA operatives intercepted two UK-bound consignments at a Lagos courier facility on 25 March. The shipments contained 1.9kg of methamphetamine concealed in automobile filters, alongside 40 ampoules of morphine sulphate and nine ampoules of fentanyl.
A raid in Yaba on 26 March led to the arrest of suspected drug baron Omolade Abigail Jolayemi, alias “Iya Ghana,” and her associate, with 135 blocks of cannabis weighing 76.3kg recovered. Another suspect, Anayo Lucky Ohabiro, was arrested in Surulere the same day with 78 blocks weighing 41kg.
In Ekiti, NDLEA operatives arrested 80-year-old Oke Samuel with 2.2kg of skunk and small quantities of methamphetamine, while a separate raid in Ondo uncovered 894.72kg of the same substance. Additional seizures included 116.7kg in Benue, 576.5kg and codeine syrup in Edo, and 135kg concealed in animal feed in Taraba, where two suspects were arrested.
NDLEA Chairman, Mohamed Buba Marwa, commended officers across multiple commands for the week’s successes, urging sustained efforts to balance drug supply reduction with demand reduction through ongoing nationwide sensitisation campaigns.
