NDLEA busts drug trafficking syndicates, kingpin after three-week long operation
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has uncovered a major drug trafficking syndicate in Lagos, intercepting cocaine concealed in tins of palm kernel oil and arresting the alleged kingpin after a three-week intelligence-led operation.
According to the agency, the breakthrough highlights its growing capacity to dismantle complex criminal networks.
As disclosed, the operation began on March 11, 2026, when NDLEA operatives at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport intercepted 3.10 kilograms of cocaine hidden inside tins of palm kernel extract bound for the United Kingdom. Two suspects, Idris Olayiwola Amoo and Akinlami Akinsoji Adedoyin, were immediately arrested at the airport’s export shed.
Investigators subsequently launched a coordinated sting operation to trace the origin of the shipment, arresting one Ezemuwo Joel, who allegedly operated under the false identity “Ajayi,” in the process.
Further intelligence led operatives to the suspected kingpin, 52-year-old King Arinze, who was apprehended at a hideout in the Isolo area of Lagos, before eventually taken to a warehouse on Ola Ifa Street in Bucknor, where officers uncovered the scale of the operation.
At the warehouse, NDLEA operatives recovered 886 tins prepared for drug concealment, along with industrial sealing machines, tin openers, paint sprays, cannabis, and other materials used in packaging. Authorities said Arinze confessed to draining palm kernel oil from the tins to hide cocaine shipments destined for international markets.
In a separate operation in Borno State, NDLEA officers arrested 28-year-old Aisha Adamu along the Gamboru Ngala road with 4.3 kilograms of Colorado, a potent synthetic strain of cannabis. Officials described her as a supplier to bandit groups operating across the North East and into neighboring Chad.
Back in Lagos, a pastor, Afolabi Hodonu, and his wife, Success Hodonu, were arrested at the Gbaji checkpoint in Badagry after officers discovered 11 kilograms of skunk concealed in their vehicle. Their arrest followed the earlier apprehension of a suspected fake security agent, Sunday Samuel, who was caught transporting 24.5 kilograms of the same substance along the Seme corridor.
Across several states, NDLEA reported additional seizures and arrests, including tramadol interceptions in Adamawa and Benue, large cannabis recoveries in Ondo, Edo, Osun, and Oyo states, and the arrest of multiple suspects linked to distribution networks.
Reacting to these developments, the NDLEA Chairman, Mohamed Buba Marwa, commended officers nationwide, stating that the successes demonstrate the agency’s resolve to disrupt drug supply chains while maintaining strong drug demand reduction efforts
