The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested two Europe-based Nigerian businessmen who attempted to smuggle 3.46 kilogrammes of cocaine to Paris, France, after ingesting 200 wraps of the illicit substance.
The suspects, identified as Aliocus Godian Odife and Sam Blackborn, were intercepted on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, during the outward clearance of an Air France flight, AF 832, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA), Abuja. Both men had returned to Nigeria for holidays before attempting to travel back to France with the drugs concealed in their stomachs.
The NDLEA disclosed this in a statement issued on Sunday by its Director, Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, who also announced the arrest of a woman with 266 rounds of live AK-47 ammunition along the Abuja–Kaduna Expressway, alongside several drug seizures across Lagos, Kano, Kaduna, Sokoto, Ondo, Oyo and Edo states.
According to the agency, Odife, who claimed to work in a factory in France, arrived in Nigeria on October 21 for a short holiday but was arrested while attempting to return to Paris. A body scan confirmed the presence of foreign objects in his stomach, prompting him to admit ingesting 110 wraps of cocaine.
He subsequently excreted all 110 wraps, weighing 1.901 kilogrammes, while his co-traveller, Blackborn, was found to have ingested 90 wraps weighing 1.559 kilogrammes. Both consignments tested positive for cocaine.
In another operation along the Abuja–Kaduna Expressway, NDLEA operatives on patrol arrested Aisha Isah at a toll gate with 266 rounds of live AK-47 ammunition.
Similarly, a 68-year-old man, Ifeanyi Egwolonwu, was arrested at Gwargwaje, Zaria, along the Zaria–Kano Expressway, with 2,770 ampoules of pentazocine injection, 100 ampoules of diazepam injection, 11,000 diazepam tablets and 4,500 tablets of Exol-5.
In Kaduna State, operatives raided Tashan Banke, arresting seven suspects, including Faisal Adamu, and recovering 178.85 kilogrammes of cannabis, alongside quantities of diazepam, tramadol, Exol-5 and pregabalin.
In Lagos, NDLEA operatives acting on intelligence on the movement of skunk from the Island to the Mainland intercepted a Volkswagen LT 28 bus along Kudirat Abiola Way, Ikeja, on Sunday, October 25, recovering 537 kilogrammes of the substance.
Another team intercepted a brown J5 bus along the Gbagada–Oshodi Expressway the same day, seizing an additional 439 kilogrammes of skunk.
In Oyo State, two suspects, Oguntona Nasiru, 46, and Soji Balogun, 47, were arrested on Thursday, October 29, while loading 554 kilogrammes of skunk into a Volvo truck at Idere Road, Igboora.
The operation targeted a notorious drug dealer identified as Omo Oba, who reportedly escaped arrest on October 25 when operatives seized 309.5 kilogrammes of Ghanaian Loud linked to him.
In Kano State, operatives raided a location in the Tsamiya area of Gezawa on October 26, recovering 247,500 tablets of diazepam weighing 57.7 kilogrammes and 100,000 tablets of Exol-5 weighing 38.7 kilogrammes.
Two days later, another operation in Dorayi resulted in the arrest of Ziya’ulhaq Abdullahi, 35, and Garba Muhammed, 52, with 19,250 pills of tramadol 225mg weighing 13.6 kilogrammes.
In Ondo State, four suspects were arrested during a raid on cannabis farms in Ijare Forest on October 25. Those arrested included Bassey Okon, 24; Abraham Edet, 20; and Oto Udo, 24. Operatives recovered 16 bags of processed cannabis weighing 180 kilogrammes.
In Edo State, NDLEA operatives, supported by soldiers, raided Eko Camp in Ilushi, Esan South-East Local Government Area, on October 28, destroying a cannabis plantation measuring 1.646 hectares with an estimated yield of 4,115.53 kilogrammes.
A 50-year-old woman, Christiana Uboi, was arrested at the camp with 301 kilogrammes of processed cannabis, while another 176 kilogrammes was recovered during the operation.
Meanwhile, operatives of the NDLEA Zone 7 Command in Sokoto State arrested a 68-year-old man, Ibrahim Ayuba, on Saturday, October 31, with 236.6 kilogrammes of skunk following an intelligence-led operation.
Beyond the arrests and seizures, the agency also sustained its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation campaign, conducting enlightenment programmes in schools, worship centres, workplaces and communities across the country.
The activities included sensitisation lectures at Obawole Grammar School II, Ojodu, Lagos; Nsukka High School, Enugu State; Government Technical College, Dorayi Babba Rijiyar Zaki, Kano State; and Ajagbe Comprehensive High School, Iperu, Ogun State, among others.
Commending officers and men of the NAIA, Lagos, Kano, Kaduna, Sokoto, Ondo, Oyo and Edo Commands for their operations, NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), described the arrest of the two cocaine couriers at Abuja airport as a fresh warning to Nigerians who believe their foreign residence could provide cover for drug trafficking.
Marwa said officers at the country’s entry and exit points remained vigilant, warning that there would be no hiding place for anyone who risked their lives and liberty by ingesting illicit drugs for financial gain.
He also charged NDLEA personnel across the country to sustain the fight against drug cartels while intensifying drug demand reduction initiatives, particularly WADA sensitisation programmes in schools, worship centres, workplaces and communities.
