NDLEA Dismantles Cocaine Cartels Behind Six UK-Bound Shipments, Arrests Mastermind, Five Accomplices
…agency seizes 20.5kg of cocaine hidden in cups, creams, and gels; destroys over 24,000kg of cannabis in Edo and Osun forests
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have successfully dismantled two major international cocaine cartels operating out of Lagos.
The operations led to the interception of six separate consignments of cocaine destined for the United Kingdom, arrests of six suspects, and the eventual capture of the cartel’s alleged leader, Alhaji Hammed Taofeek Ode.
The NDLEA, in a statement issued by its Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, on Sunday, 5th October 2025, revealed that the drug syndicates had concealed cocaine in the walls of stainless cups, body creams, and hair gel containers – an intricate concealment method designed to beat airport detection systems.
The operation began on 16th September 2025 at the export shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos, where NDLEA operatives intercepted 174 parcels of cocaine weighing 13.4 kilogrammes concealed in cocoa butter body cream containers.
A cargo agent was immediately taken into custody, and subsequent investigations pointed to Alhaji Hammed Taofeek Ode as the mastermind behind the consignment.
Ode, who reportedly parades himself as a businessman and real estate developer, was tracked and apprehended following collaboration between the NDLEA and the police after he had appeared at the Zone 2 Police Headquarters in Lagos over a separate dispute.
During his preliminary interrogation, Ode admitted ownership of the intercepted cocaine, claiming he purchased the consignment for over N150 million. The suspect disclosed that he had lived across several European countries – including Austria, the Netherlands, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom – for 27 years before returning to Nigeria in 2024.
In similar fashion, another criminal network’s attempts to export five cocaine consignments to the United Kingdom were also thwarted by NDLEA operatives at the MMIA’s Strategic Command.
The crackdown began on 26th September 2025, when officers seized 2.10 kilogrammes of cocaine concealed in hair cream containers. The arrest of a cargo agent led to the capture of Smith David Korede, a furniture maker based in Oshodi, Lagos. Further searches at his residence yielded another 1.40 kilogrammes of cocaine also meant for export.
The same day, a third consignment containing 1.00 kilogramme of cocaine was intercepted, with another cargo agent confirming Korede as the consignor.
Two additional consignments, intercepted on 2nd October, contained crayfish and stainless cups filled with 1.00 kilogramme of cocaine, as well as hair cream containers hiding 1.60 kilogrammes. Two suspects, Ogunbiyi Oluseye Taiwo and Popoola Francis Olumuyiwa, were promptly arrested in connection with the discoveries.
The NDLEA’s operations extended beyond Lagos. In one case, operatives attached to courier companies foiled an attempt to smuggle 6.3 kilogrammes of Loud — a potent strain of cannabis — from Thailand, concealed in bedsheets and hibiscus flowers.
A joint operation with the Nigeria Customs Service at a checkpoint along the Danbatta–Daura road in Kano also led to the arrest of Sa’adu Ali, 38, and the seizure of 290,450 pills of Tramadol 250mg and Pregabalin capsules.
In Lagos, a notorious dealer known as John Igbe (alias SammyBless), who allegedly distributes synthetic cannabis (Colorado) in the Lekki and Ajah areas, was arrested with 550 grammes of the substance. Similarly, Idris Lukman, Fuad Abdulsalam, and Mobolaji James were arrested in Mushin with 109 kilogrammes of skunk, 20 bottles of codeine syrup, and 2 kilogrammes of nitrous oxide.
NDLEA operatives also recovered 3,700 bottles of codeine syrup and 550,000 expired Diclofenac tablets from the Trade Fair Complex in Lagos.
In Kwara State, Salisu Abubakar, 25, was intercepted in Bode Saadu with 27,700 Tramadol pills. In Kaduna, Blessing Ovaka, 50, was found with nearly half a tonne (498.5 kilogrammes) of skunk, while Dahiru Salisu, 27, was arrested along the Kaduna–Zaria highway with 34,180 Tramadol capsules.
In Ogun, NDLEA operatives raided Isheri in Obafemi Owode LGA, arresting Abubakar Audu with 112 kilogrammes of skunk. In neighbouring Osun State, three suspects — Chuimieze Shedrack, Sunday John, and Solomon Okopko — were arrested during a raid on a 5.6-hectare cannabis plantation in the Owena/Ijesha Forest Reserve, where 14,000 kilogrammes of skunk were destroyed.
A similar operation in Edo State led to the interception of a Toyota Sienna van loaded with 244.5 kilogrammes of skunk at Igbanke, Orhionmwon LGA. Two suspects — Michael Ayang and Bernard New Year (alias Don) — were arrested. NDLEA operatives further destroyed 10,897.35 kilogrammes of cannabis across four farms covering over four hectares in Ugbodo Forest, Ovia North East LGA.
Other seizures included 3.27 kilogrammes of Loud recovered from a parcel en route from Lagos to Abuja, leading to the arrest of Tobi Odubote, 34, in Gwagwalada. Another suspect, Ismail Abdurrahim, 32, was caught with 25.5 kilogrammes of skunk along the Abaji–Abuja expressway.
Across the country, NDLEA Commands continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation campaigns in schools, markets, and religious centres, reaching students in Adamawa, Katsina, Niger, and Lagos States. The Imo State Command also paid an advocacy visit to the State First Lady, Barrister Chioma Uzodinma, in Owerri.
Commending the operatives involved in the operations, NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive, Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), reaffirmed the Agency’s commitment to dismantling drug cartels at every level of their operations.
“We’ll continue to target and dismantle every identified drug cartel — from the mules to the dealers in between and up to their leadership,” Marwa said. “These successful operations should serve as a warning that NDLEA will not relent until the menace of substance abuse and illicit drug trafficking is eliminated.”
He added that every arrest, seizure, and asset forfeiture “signifies innocent lives saved and communities protected, both within Nigeria and beyond.”
The NDLEA has vowed to sustain its onslaught against drug trafficking and abuse, promising that no criminal network, no matter how sophisticated, will escape its reach.
