NDLEA Nabs Individuals With Cocaine Wrapped In Shoes, Prayer Beads Bound For Holy Land [PHOTOS]

Agents of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have successfully seized cocaine hidden within prayer beads and handmade footwear.

Naija News reports that the agency reported that the individuals were apprehended while trying to transport these illegal drugs into the Holy Land.

The Director of Media and Advocacy for the agency, Femi Babafemi, shared this information in a statement that included images of the seized items.

The statement read, “Narco-trend update: In this holy month when people are consecrating themselves and making supplications to their God, some persons were preoccupied with concealing cocaine in prayer beads and locally made shoes to desecrate the precincts of the holy land in the holy month.

“They were, however, intercepted by #ndlea_nigeria officers as shown by the attached pictures.”

The official statement from Babafemi said: “Desperate bids by some drug trafficking organisations (DTO) to move illicit consignments such as Cocaine, Tramadol, Loud, Molly and others concealed in prayer beads, packs of board games, female cloths to the United States of America, Saudi Arabia, Italy, Poland, and United Arab Emirates through logistics firms and the Lagos airport have been thwarted by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA.

“At least two suspects behind some of the aborted missions at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, MMIA, Ikeja Lagos have already been arrested. One of them is a 43-year-old businesswoman, Jakpor Egware May, who was nabbed at the Gate ‘C’ departure hall of the Lagos airport while attempting to board an Air France flight to Italy on Saturday, 8th March 2025.

“When she was searched, 190 parcels of tramadol 225mg and another parcel of skunk, a strain of cannabis, were recovered from her luggage. In her statement, she claimed that she bought the drugs herself, with the intention to resell them in Italy.

“At the export shed of the Lagos airport, NDLEA officers on Tuesday, 11th Marc,h arrested a 60-year-old suspect, Yahaya Fatai Ayinla, while attempting to ship a cargo containing cloth used to conceal 400 grams of skunk going to New York, United States of America.”

See some of the images of the intercepted contraband below:

The NDLEA reported the arrest of a 58-year-old individual, Ade Esan, also known as Pastor, on Tuesday, March 11th, along the Gwagwalada expressway in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

The agency said the suspect was found in possession of 27,800 pills of tramadol, each containing 225mg. On the same day, another suspect, 26-year-old Usman Mohammed, was apprehended in the Wuse Zone 3 area of Abuja with various amounts of skunk and cocaine.

In Abia State, NDLEA operatives conducted a raid on the Ntigha community in Isiala-Ngwa North Local Government Area on Saturday, March 15th, resulting in the arrest of 34-year-old Chinaza Nwogu, also known as Young Money.

He was found with 274 grams of heroin, 141 grams of methamphetamine, 2.931 kilograms of cannabis sativa, 4 grams of cocaine, and a monetary exhibit totaling Seven Hundred and Fifty-Three Thousand, Fifteen Naira (N753,015.00).

Additionally, NDLEA operatives from the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation (DOGI) thwarted attempts by drug traffickers in Lagos to export over two kilograms of Loud, Molly, and tramadol (365mg and 225mg) concealed within Vitamin C bottles and women’s clothing to the United States.

Between Monday, March 10th, and Wednesday, March 12th, other shipments containing 230 grams of cocaine hidden in prayer beads, the soles of locally made shoes, and packs of board games destined for Saudi Arabia, Poland, and the UAE were also intercepted.

In Kano, law enforcement officials recovered 727 blocks of compressed skunk, weighing a total of 479 kg, from a 40-year-old suspect named Hassan Haruna. He was apprehended by NDLEA operatives in the Chalawa area of the state on Wednesday, March 12. Additionally, on Tuesday, March 11, authorities intercepted a commercial bus along the Kabba-Obajana highway in Kogi State, seizing no fewer than 58,300 pills of tramadol that were being transported from Lagos to Abuja.

On Thursday, March 13, a raid in Kachia, Kaduna State, resulted in the arrest of 21-year-old Idris Hamza, who was found in possession of 4,900 pills of tramadol (225 mg). A subsequent operation in the Hayin Banki area of Kaduna North LGA on Friday, March 14, led to the arrest of 25-year-old Aminu Magaji, from whom 2,900 tablets of tramadol (225 mg) were confiscated.

Furthermore, on Friday, March 14, a total of 40,200 tablets of tramadol (225 mg) were seized from Olowoko Faruk and Akeem Ridwan along the Ilorin-Jebba expressway in Bode Saadu, Kwara State. On the same day, NDLEA operatives also confiscated 21,700 capsules of the same opioid from a suspect named Salisu Usman along the Eiyenkorin expressway in Ilorin on Thursday, March 13.

In Taraba State, NDLEA officers arrested 35-year-old Polycarp Adeku on Friday, March 14, at Bente Road in Kurmi LGA, with 15.77 kg of skunk. Meanwhile, in Osun State, operatives intercepted a commercial bus marked SGB 564 YS, which was traveling from Idumota, Lagos Island, in front of King University, Ode-omu, on Thursday, March 13. This operation resulted in the seizure of 48.7 kg of various strains of cannabis, including Ghanaian Loud, Colorado, and Canadian Loud. Follow-up operations in Osogbo and Ile-Ife led to the arrest of at least nine suspects in connection with this seizure.

Babafemi, in the statement made available to newsmen on Sunday, 16th March 2025, stated that in the past week, the Agency’s Commands and formations nationwide have continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) through various sensitization initiatives targeting schools, places of worship, workplaces, and communities.

These activities included WADA enlightenment lectures delivered to students and staff at several institutions, such as U.P.E School in Ilara Epe, Lagos; Government Day Secondary School in Jigalambu, Michika, Adamawa State; Agbegi High Grammar School in Dekina, Kogi State; Capital City Secondary School in Awka, Anambra State; and Eso-Obe Comprehensive High School in Ikoro Ekiti, Ekiti State, among others.

The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), praised the officers and personnel from the MMIA, DOGI, and the Commands in Kano, Kwara, Kaduna, Taraba, Abia, Osun, and the Federal Capital Territory for their commendable arrests and seizures.

He expressed appreciation for their operational achievements and those of their colleagues across the nation, particularly highlighting their effective balance in efforts to reduce both drug supply and demand.

A week earlier, a dealer of automobile spare parts based in Lagos, Levi Ubodoeze, was arrested by NDLEA officials for his attempt to export two kilograms of cocaine hidden within vehicle propellers destined for Angola.

The agency’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, shared this information in a statement released on Sunday.

The statement highlighted that just three weeks after initiating a search for him, NDLEA operatives successfully arrested Levi Chidiebele Ubodoeze in connection with his recent attempt to smuggle two kilograms of cocaine concealed in vehicle propellers to Angola.

The cocaine shipment was intercepted at a logistics company located in Aspanda, Trade Fair Complex, Ojo area of Lagos on February 21, 2025.

Following this seizure, the agency promptly coordinated with Angolan authorities, leading to the arrest of the intended recipient of the drugs in Angola, which subsequently revealed Ubodoeze’s identity.

Consequently, on Thursday, March 6, NDLEA operatives tracked Ubodoeze to his residence in the Ago Palace Way area of Isolo, Lagos, where he was found attempting to flee in a KIA Sport Utility Vehicle, as noted in the statement.

A search of the vehicle reportedly uncovered a significant quantity of phenacetin, a cutting agent for cocaine, weighing 75.50 kilograms, which was packaged and labeled as semolina. Additionally, a digital scale used for weighing illegal substances was recovered from his residence.

In his confession, Ubodoeze allegedly acknowledged his participation in the cocaine trade while operating a motor spare parts business at Ladipo Market in Mushin, Lagos.