NDLEA Arrests Drug Kingpin, Others in Nationwide Crackdown
…Agency uncovers drug-laced cakes for students, intercepts passports concealed in exports
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has commenced 2025 with significant operations, arresting a notorious drug kingpin and Lagos socialite, Alhaja Aishat Feyisara Ajoke Elediye, alias “Iya Ruka,” on 1 January in Lagos.
This comes alongside the apprehension of a prominent filmmaker, Emeka Emmanuel Mbadiwe, and other suspects in sweeping drug enforcement actions across Nigeria.
Alhaja Ajoke, 61, was apprehended at her mansion in Okota, Lagos, following the interception of a truckload of cannabis allegedly linked to her.
The consignment, concealed in 44 jumbo sacks weighing 1,540 kilograms, was seized from a white Izuzu truck driven by her employee, Abideen Adio.
Alhaja Ajoke, known in the social circuit as a fabric and shoe importer, is also the Iyalaje of Blessing Sisters, an influential Lagos women’s club. However, her arrest reveals her central role in a Mushin-based drug cartel.
In another operation on 27 December 2024, NDLEA officers arrested US-trained filmmaker and motivational speaker Emeka Emmanuel Mbadiwe at a hotel in Lekki, Lagos.
His accomplice, Uzoekwe Ugochukwu James, was earlier arrested at a warehouse in Ajao Estate while attempting to retrieve a shipment of 33 parcels of Loud, a potent strain of cannabis weighing 17.3 kilograms.
The shipment, concealed in wooden boxes, arrived via Delta Airlines on 24 December at Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos.
In Kwara State, two young women, 24-year-old graduate Khadijat Abdulraheem and 20-year-old University of Ilorin student Ayomide Morakinyo, were arrested on 29 December 2024 for producing and selling drug-laced cupcakes to students.
A raid on their apartment at Tanke-University Road, Ilorin, yielded 42 pieces of the cakes.
Sodade Sunday Eniola, a convicted drug trafficker released in June 2024 after paying a fine, was rearrested at MMIA for passport racketeering.
NDLEA operatives uncovered 52 passports from various countries concealed in shoe soles and food items intended for export to Canada, Russia, and other destinations.
Three other suspects – Ayinde Saheed Awwal, Salaudeen Afeez Ayode, and Sheriff Adebayo Bamigbade – were also arrested.
The suspects and exhibits were handed over to the Nigerian Immigration Service for further investigation.
In Port Harcourt, Rivers State, NDLEA officers, in collaboration with Nigeria Customs, seized 316,800 bottles of codeine-based syrup from two containers at the Onne Ports Complex on 31 December 2024.
The Kano State Command intercepted 149,090 pills of tramadol and exol-5 during a raid on the Mafarki area in Dala Local Government Area on the same day.
Meanwhile, the agency intensified its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) initiatives, organising sensitisation lectures at marketplaces, schools, and religious centres, including Ido-Osi Central Market in Ekiti State and Birnin Kudu Central Mosque in Jigawa State.
The NDLEA Chairman, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), lauded the efforts of the agency’s operatives, particularly those in Lagos, Kano, Rivers, and Kwara, for their dedication to drug control and awareness.
He emphasised the importance of their balanced approach in tackling drug supply and demand reduction.
As the agency continues its campaign against drug abuse, these operations signal a resolute start to the year, reinforcing the NDLEA’s commitment to a drug-free Nigeria.
