Published by SpringNewsNG Media Limited — June 2, 2025

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intercepted a major drug trafficking network that was using Hajj pilgrims as couriers to smuggle cocaine to Saudi Arabia. In a coordinated operation in Kano, NDLEA operatives arrested three suspected cartel leaders—Abubakar Muhammad, Abdulhakeem Tijjani, and Muhammad Aji Shugaba—on May 27 and 28, 2025.

This breakthrough followed the arrest of two Saudi-bound pilgrims, Ibrahim Mustapha and Muhammad Shifado, at Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport on May 26. They were caught during the outbound clearance for Ethiopian Airlines flight ET 940 to Jeddah.

According to NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi, both suspects tested positive during a body scan and were placed under excretion observation. They each excreted 45 wraps of cocaine, totaling 90 pellets and weighing 1.04kg.

“Further investigation linked them to a notorious drug trafficking syndicate operating out of Kano,” Babafemi said. “A swift follow-up operation led to the arrest of their sponsors.”

In a related development at the same airport, NDLEA arrested a 60-year-old businessman, Chinedu Leonard Okigbo, on May 28 while boarding Qatar Airways flight QR1432 to Iran. He was found to have ingested 65 wraps of cocaine, weighing 1.41kg.

Meanwhile, at the Port Harcourt Ports Complex in Onne, Rivers State, NDLEA and customs officers conducted a joint inspection of seven flagged containers between May 28 and 30. The operation uncovered a staggering 825,200 bottles of codeine-based syrup and Trodol, valued at ₦5.78 billion, alongside 5.1 million tablets of Tapentadol 225mg, worth ₦3.57 billion—a total street value of ₦9.35 billion.

In another major bust on May 30, NDLEA officers patrolling the Kano–Maiduguri Road intercepted two men, Abubakar Hussein (42) and Sahabi Adamu (53), with $900,000 in suspected counterfeit US currency. The case has been handed over to the appropriate authorities.

Elsewhere in Adamawa State, 390 blocks of compressed cannabis (skunk) weighing 275.3kg were discovered abandoned in a Toyota Sienna parked along the Ngurore–Yola Road on May 27.

In Kwara State, NDLEA arrested a notorious female drug dealer, Alhaja Mutiat Abdul-Fatai, on May 31 in the Oja Oba area of Ilorin. Recovered from her home were various quantities of opioids including tramadol, flunitrazepam, and codeine-based syrup.

NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), praised the agency’s officers in Kano, Port Harcourt, Kwara, and Adamawa for their dedication and effective operations. He reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to curbing both drug supply and demand nationwide.