The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intercepted multiple consignments of illicit drugs cleverly concealed in frozen snails, giant rechargeable electrical bulbs, and female clothing at Lagos’ Murtala Muhammed International Airport and a courier company.
The drugs were destined for the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Among those arrested is Boladale Riliwan, a cargo agent apprehended on October 7, 2025, after 15 parcels of skunk (a cannabis strain) were discovered hidden inside electrical bulbs intended for export to the DRC. Another suspect, Olawale Oyebola Hakeemot, a 48-year-old UK-based Public Health Assistant, was arrested on October 12 at Lagos airport for attempting to smuggle 2,300 tramadol 225mg pills concealed in frozen snails bound for Manchester, UK.
Therefore, NDLEA officers also thwarted an attempt to export 810 bromazepam pills hidden in women’s clothes destined for the US on October 16 at a courier company.
Additionally, in Adamawa State, Bello Buba was stopped at an NDLEA checkpoint with 38,270 tramadol tablets concealed in his vehicle, having transported the drugs from Benin Republic to Nigeria. The agency disclosed these operations are part of ongoing efforts to crack down on drug trafficking across multiple Nigerian states, highlighting the sophisticated methods traffickers use to evade detection.
