The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (National Drug Law Enforcement Agency) has intercepted a large shipment of cocaine concealed inside imported dry stockfish, popularly known as Okporoko, and arrested multiple suspects in coordinated nationwide operations.
The main arrest followed intelligence-led surveillance by operatives of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport Strategic Command in Lagos, where a 36-year-old suspect, Akputa Dickson Ejike, was apprehended with three jumbo bags.
A search of the bags uncovered 237 wraps of cocaine weighing about 5.8 kilograms hidden in fish heads. The consignment was reportedly destined for Delhi, India.
In another operation, NDLEA officers intercepted drug shipments headed for the United Kingdom at a courier facility in Lagos. The parcels contained 1.9 kilograms of methamphetamine concealed in automobile filters, along with ampoules of morphine sulphate and fentanyl.
Separately, operatives from the agency’s Special Operations Unit raided a residence in Yaba, Lagos, arresting a suspected drug kingpin, 46-year-old Omolade Abigail Jolayemi, also known as “Iya Ghana,” alongside an accomplice. Officers recovered 135 blocks of cannabis weighing more than 76 kilograms from the property.
In Surulere, another suspect was arrested with 78 blocks of cannabis weighing about 41 kilograms. Additional raids across Ekiti, Ondo, Benue, Edo, and Taraba states also led to multiple arrests and seizures of illicit drugs, including cannabis and methamphetamine.
The agency also continued its nationwide War Against Drug Abuse sensitisation campaign in schools as part of its preventive efforts.
Chairman of the NDLEA, Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa, commended the operatives involved and reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to both drug supply reduction and public awareness campaigns.
