The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested several people across Nigeria in its latest efforts to stop drug trafficking — including a 72-year-old grandmother and two international smugglers caught at an airport.
According to a Sunday statement from NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi, the elderly woman, Mrs. Christy Ejaro, was arrested on June 25 in Warri, Delta State, with small sachets of skunk (a strong type of cannabis) already packed and ready for sale.
At the Enugu airport, on June 28, NDLEA officers stopped Chibuzor Emmanuel, a 38-year-old bar worker from Mozambique, who flew in from Johannesburg via Addis Ababa. After checking his bags, officers found 17.5kg of methamphetamine and 3.05kg of cocaine hidden in bedsheets.
On the same flight was Azu Kpodar, 54, who claimed to sell toys in Brazil. A search of his bags revealed 1.25kg of liquid cocaine disguised in a bottle of liquid soap. He said he bought it while preparing for his wedding in Nigeria.
At the Seme border in Lagos, 26-year-old Vode Jean-Luck, a Beninese national, was caught trying to smuggle 69 wraps of skunk (weighing 29.5kg) from Benin Republic into Nigeria.
In Kwara State, NDLEA arrested Bolanle Oladele, also known as Iya Nafi, a known drug dealer in Omu-Aran. Officers found skunk, tramadol, and flunitrazepam during the raid on her base.
The head of the NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (rtd), praised the teams in Delta, Kwara, and Seme for their hard work. He also highlighted the agency’s ongoing push to both reduce drug supply and prevent people from using drugs.
The arrests show how traffickers are getting more creative — from hiding drugs in everyday items to using unexpected people, like a grandmother — but also how the NDLEA is keeping up and staying ahead.
