NDLEA Intercepts N10.4bn Canadian Loud at Lagos Port, Marwa Vows

Oru Leonard 

Crackdown on Drug Syndicates
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intercepted a massive consignment of Canadian Loud, a high-potency strain of cannabis, valued at over N10.4 billion at the Tincan Island Port in Lagos.

The illicit consignment, weighing 4,173.5 kilograms, was uncovered after months of intelligence gathering, surveillance, and coordinated international tracking by NDLEA operatives and global anti-narcotics partners.

According to the agency, the shipment originated from Toronto, Canada on March 28, before being moved by rail to Montreal and subsequently shipped aboard the vessel Jakarta Express Voyage. The container later passed through Tanger Med Port in Morocco before arriving in Lagos aboard another vessel, Osaka Voyage, on May 9, 2026.
The seizure was carried out on Tuesday, May 12, during a joint examination involving NDLEA operatives, officers of the Nigeria Customs Service, and other security agencies.

The NDLEA said the operation was driven by the Agency’s Marine Intelligence Unit and the Tincan Island Strategic Command in collaboration with international partners including the United Kingdom Home Office International Operations, the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

The agency disclosed that the drugs were professionally concealed inside a used Ford Bus and a Mercedes Benz C300 vehicle packed within the shipping container.

The latest interception comes barely four days after NDLEA operatives raided a Lekki mansion allegedly used as a stash house, where 2,326 kilograms of the same psychoactive substance worth over N5.8 billion were recovered.

Speaking during the handover of the seized exhibits by the Nigeria Customs Service on Wednesday in Lagos, the NDLEA Director of Seaports Operations, ACG Ibinabo ArchieAbia, said the success of the operation underscored the value of collaboration among security agencies and international partners.

According to him, “This achievement once again demonstrates the effectiveness of inter-agency cooperation, international collaboration, and intelligence-driven operations in combating transnational organized crime and illicit drug trafficking.”
Reacting to the development, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Mohamed Buba Marwa, commended officers of the Tincan Command and the Marine Intelligence Unit for their professionalism and vigilance.

Marwa said the repeated seizures of Canadian Loud pointed to a deliberate attempt by international drug cartels to flood the Nigerian market with synthetic cannabis strains.

“This second massive seizure in less than a week is a clear message to the international syndicates who think they can use our ports as entry points for their soul-destroying trade, that the synergy between NDLEA and Customs Service as well as other security agencies and our international partners like the Canadian Royal Mounted Police, the UK-HOIO and the US DEA is yielding fantastic results,” the NDLEA boss stated.
“We will not rest until every link in this supply chain is broken and those behind these shipments are brought to justice,” he added.

The statement was signed by NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, on Wednesday, May 13, 2026.