NDLEA tracks down convicted trafficker behind Saudi-bound cocaine shipment

… Agency intercepts drug-laden fuel tanker, recovers millions of opioid pills, cannabis, meth in nine-state operations

Oru Leonard 

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), have arrested a convicted cocaine trafficker allegedly behind illicit drug shipments to Saudi Arabia, while also intercepting a fuel tanker fitted with a concealed compartment containing over two tonnes of cannabis in a coordinated crackdown across nine states. The operations, which took place in Lagos, Adamawa, Ondo, Kaduna, Bauchi, Ekiti, Kogi, Taraba and Enugu states, also resulted in the recovery of large consignments of tramadol, cannabis, methamphetamine, codeine, rohypnol and other psychotropic substances.

The suspect, 34-year-old Dunu Bethel Ebubechukwu, was arrested in a sting operation at Article Market, opposite Trade Fair Market, Ojo, Lagos, on Friday, September 4, 2026, after NDLEA investigators traced him to a 1.2kg cocaine shipment intercepted on July 31.

 

The cocaine, concealed inside phone chargers, was destined for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and had been intercepted at a courier company in Lagos. According to the NDLEA, the suspect admitted during questioning that he had masterminded some illicit drug shipments in the past.

He also disclosed that he discarded his telephone SIM card after learning that the latest consignment had been intercepted. Investigations further revealed that Ebubechukwu had previously been arrested in 2011 at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, after ingesting 900 grammes of cocaine and 130 grammes of heroin while attempting to travel to Austria. He was prosecuted, convicted and sentenced to five years imprisonment.

 

The Agency said he subsequently changed his name and allegedly returned to drug trafficking. A search of his residence at Ejigbo, Lagos, on September 4 led to the recovery of phone chargers similar to those allegedly used to conceal the intercepted cocaine shipment. The internal components of the chargers had been removed to create space for the drugs. At the Lagos airport, NDLEA operatives also recovered 966,200 tablets of Tramadol 225mg, valued at over N1.1 billion, from a 21-carton consignment from Pakistan. The tablets were concealed among thrift trousers. Another 57.80kg of Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis valued at over N173 million, was recovered from cartons of disposable hand gloves in a shipment from Singapore that had remained unclaimed for weeks.

The discovery followed a joint examination by NDLEA officers, Customs and other security agencies on September 3. In Ondo State, NDLEA officers intercepted a 20,000-litre fuel tanker marked MKA 960 XC along the Akoko/Lokoja Expressway after the driver allegedly refused to stop.

The driver later abandoned the tanker at a church premises in Ugbe Akoko and escaped into the bush. A search of the vehicle uncovered a concealed compartment containing 165 bags of cannabis weighing 2,145kg, hidden alongside the legitimate fuel cargo reportedly destined for Jos, Plateau State.

 

At the Tincan Port in Lagos, the Agency also intercepted another 598.08kg, comprising 890 packets, of cannabis-laced cookies and gummies concealed in a 40-foot container on Wednesday, September 2. The shipment was linked to three suspects—Yashim Dauji, Larry Ifeanyi and Joseph Moji—who had earlier been arrested following the seizure of 842.54kg of cannabis-laced cookies.

 

In Adamawa State, NDLEA operatives recovered 864,000 opioid pills, particularly tramadol, from a residence linked to a fleeing suspect, Patrick KC Frank, along the Damilu-Jambutu axis of Jimeta, Yola North Local Government Area.

 

The suspect reportedly escaped after his Honda Civic car rammed an NDLEA patrol vehicle. In Michika, a 35-year-old suspected methamphetamine supplier, Calistus Ebubechukwu, was arrested with 2kg of the illicit substance while allegedly supplying the Mubi and Michika axis from Lagos.

 

Another suspect, Attahiru Hussaini, was intercepted at Namtari checkpoint in Mubi on August 31 with a large consignment of tramadol and other opioids concealed in a soap-laden Ford Galaxy bus marked JJM-953XD. In Lagos, operatives recovered 2,386.9kg of cannabis, 350 grammes of cocaine, over 100kg of assorted grades of tramadol, 9.7 litres of codeine syrup and 4kg of rohypnol at Gbaji.

 

Two other suspects, Damilare Francis and Emeh Emmanuel, were arrested at Agbara with 720kg of cannabis. In Kogi State, three suspects—Saidu Mustapha, 35; Zaharadeen Salisu, 29; and AbdulSalam Abdullahi, 25—were arrested with 636kg of cannabis allegedly concealed in chicken manure aboard a bus travelling from Owo, Ondo State, to Jos, Plateau State.

 

In Taraba State, 58-year-old Kelechi Unachukwu was arrested along Zaki-Biam Road, Wukari Local Government Area, with over 109kg of assorted controlled substances, including tramadol, diazepam, pentazocine, phenobarbital, exol-5, nitrazepam, bromazepam and pregabalin. The drugs were reportedly being conveyed in his Toyota Corolla car marked KUJ-333BT from Onitsha, Anambra State, to Yola, Adamawa State. Similarly, a truck loaded with bags of cement was intercepted along the Zaria-Kano Expressway in Kaduna State, leading to the recovery of 1,179kg of skunk. In Bauchi State, 25-year-old Hamza Dahiru was arrested in a follow-up operation after the seizure of 322.5kg of cannabis at Deba town in Gombe State on September 1.

 

In Ekiti State, NDLEA operatives uncovered and destroyed a four-hectare cannabis farm in Efon-Alaaye forest. Two suspects, Chuks Alex, 50, and Asafa Adekunle, 35, were arrested, while 117kg of already-harvested skunk was recovered. In Enugu State, a 20-year-old suspect, Obinna David, was arrested at Ugbema Junction on September 5 with 40,590 capsules of tramadol.

 

Meanwhile, NDLEA Commands and formations across the country continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation programmes in schools, worship centres, workplaces and communities.

The activities included enlightenment lectures for nursing mothers and nurses at Ibereko Primary Health Centre, Abeokuta North, Ogun State; youths of Umouji/Okwo community at Olokoro, Umuahia South Local Government Area of Abia State; and NLNG staff and concessionaires at Saipem-Daewoo, NLNG terminal, Bonny Local Government Area of Rivers State.

 

Commending officers and men of the various commands and formations involved in the operations, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd), urged personnel to sustain the Agency’s intelligence-driven and balanced approach to drug control. He warned that traffickers who attempt to evade detection by adopting new identities or operating under legitimate business fronts would continue to be tracked down. Femi Babafemi Director, Media and Advocacy NDLEA Headquarters, Abuja Sunday, September 6, 2026