NDLEA Intercepts ‘Jihadi Drug’, 3.9 Million Opioid Pills Worth Over ₦6.2bn in Lagos
NDLEA Intercepts ‘Jihadi Drug’, 3.9 Million Opioid Pills Worth Over ₦6.2bn in Lagos
NDLEA Intercepts ‘Jihadi Drug’, 3.9 Million Opioid Pills Worth Over ₦6.2bn in Lagos
ABUJA: Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have intercepted a major consignment of illicit drugs, including 47,200 tablets of Captagon, popularly known as the “Jihadi drug”, and more than 3.9 million opioid pills valued at over ₦6.2 billion at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos.
The seizures formed part of a series of nationwide operations carried out by the anti-narcotics agency between August 19 and 28, 2026, as it intensifies efforts to disrupt international drug trafficking networks and prevent dangerous substances from reaching Nigerian communities.
Captagon concealed in ‘Ghana Soap’
The Captagon consignment was intercepted at the Lagos airport on Saturday, August 22, following the arrest of 49-year-old cross-border drug trafficker Akinbile Kazeem Aikins, who arrived from Accra, Ghana, aboard an African World Airlines flight.
During a search of his carton of locally produced bathing soap, popularly known as “Ghana Soap”, NDLEA operatives discovered 47,200 tablets of Captagon, with an estimated street value of more than ₦1.5 billion, concealed inside blocks of soap.
Captagon is an amphetamine-based illicit drug that has gained notoriety for its reported association with illicit markets and extremist activities in conflict zones. NDLEA said the suspect claimed during questioning that the consignment was intended for delivery in northern Nigeria.
The agency first intercepted Captagon in Nigeria in September 2021 at the Apapa Port in Lagos.
Nearly four million opioid tablets intercepted
In a separate operation at MMIA, NDLEA officers recovered 3,900,030 tablets of Tramaking 225mg and Tapentadol 250mg from four abandoned consignments at the airport’s import shed.
The consignments, weighing a combined 2,787.40 kilogrammes, were estimated to have a street value of more than ₦4.6 billion.
Three consignments containing 900,000 tablets of Tramaking, weighing 815.40kg, arrived on RwandAir flights from Bangladesh, while another consignment containing 3,000,030 tablets of Tapentadol, weighing 1,972kg, arrived aboard Qatar Airways from Amsterdam.
The shipments were placed under surveillance after no individual appeared to claim them. They were subsequently retrieved and examined jointly by NDLEA officers, Customs officials and other relevant stakeholders on Friday, August 28.
US returnee arrested with Loud in Lekki
In another operation, NDLEA operatives arrested 31-year-old Sowunmi David Oludotun, a US returnee, in the Ikate area of Lekki, Lagos, on August 19.
Oludotun was reportedly arrested after arriving to take delivery of 3.350kg of Loud, a potent strain of cannabis allegedly imported from the United Kingdom.
Fireproof safe yields cocaine, heroin in Rivers
In Rivers State, NDLEA operatives raided the notorious Abuja Down/Up area of Port Harcourt, where they recovered a fireproof iron safe.
After the safe was opened with a welding machine on Tuesday, August 25, officers recovered 237 grammes of Colorado, 316 grammes of cocaine and 10 grammes of heroin.
Over one tonne of cannabis seized in Ondo
NDLEA operatives also recorded major cannabis seizures in Ondo State.
Three suspects — Oyedele Daniel, 42; Taye Saliu, 36; and Kehinde Saliu, 36 — were arrested on Friday, August 28, along the Ipele-Idoani road with 728kg of skunk concealed in a truck marked KRE 120 XB.
Two other suspects, Uche Joseph, 35, and Godwin Umeh, 21, were arrested at Aponmu Forest on Wednesday, August 26, with another 341kg of skunk.
Over 176,000 opioid pills recovered in Delta
In Delta State, more than 176,000 tablets of assorted opioids, including tramadol and molly, were recovered in two separate interdiction operations conducted between August 26 and 28.
The latest seizures underscore the agency’s continued focus on disrupting both international supply routes and domestic distribution networks.
NDLEA intensifies drug-abuse prevention campaigns
Beyond enforcement operations, NDLEA Commands and formations across the country continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation campaigns during the week.
The programmes targeted schools, worship centres, workplaces and communities, including engagements with students and staff of Markaz Littahfizul Quran Wal Islamiyyat in Dadin Kowa, Gombe; Zangina Islamiyyah Alasawa Kurna in Ungogo Local Government Area of Kano; and youths participating in an adolescent lifestyle programme organised by NNPCL in Benin City, Edo State.
The Ondo State Command also paid a WADA advocacy visit to Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, while the Taraba Command held a similar engagement with Governor Agbu Kefas.
Commending officers and personnel of the MMIA, Ondo and Delta Commands for the successful operations, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd.), urged personnel across the country to sustain the agency’s balanced approach to drug control.
Marwa also directed officers to maintain pressure on drug trafficking networks, particularly those increasingly employing sophisticated concealment methods to smuggle illicit substances through everyday items such as bathing soap.
He reaffirmed the agency’s determination to disrupt the activities of drug traffickers while simultaneously strengthening public awareness and prevention efforts aimed at reducing drug abuse across Nigeria.
NDLEA Intercepts ‘Jihadi Drug’, 3.9 Million Opioid Pills Worth Over ₦6.2bn in Lagos
