Brazilian returnee, hotel handler, others Nabbed as NDLEA dismantles drug syndicates

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intensified its clampdown on transnational and domestic drug cartels, arresting several suspects in Lagos and across multiple states in the past week.

A statement issued by Femi Babafemi, Director of Media and Advocacy at the NDLEA Headquarters in Abuja, confirmed the arrest of 46-year-old Ofoma Sunday, a Nigerian who returned from Brazil with heroin concealed in his body.

Ofoma was intercepted on Tuesday, September 16, 2025, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, upon arrival on an Ethiopian Airlines flight. Under observatory custody, he excreted a total of 111 wraps of heroin weighing 1.452 kilograms in eight batches.

Preliminary investigation revealed that Ofoma departed Nigeria on September 3, 2025, for Brazil, where he was contracted to courier the heroin consignment into Lagos for a promised fee of $2,500.

NDLEA operatives trailed him to Eliata Hotel in Amuwo Odofin, Lagos, where he was scheduled to meet his handler, 55-year-old Nweke Jude Chukwudi. Chukwudi, assigned to supervise the excretion and collection of the drugs, was promptly arrested.

In a separate operation, another passenger, Ukachukwu Frank Ikechukwu, was apprehended on September 19 during inward clearance of Ethiopian Airlines passengers from Brazil. He later excreted five wraps of cocaine weighing 145 grams.

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Ukachukwu confessed he had purchased nine wraps in Brazil and concealed them in his anus, but severe pains during transit in Addis Ababa forced him to discard two. He expelled two more mid-flight, arriving Nigeria with only five.

Further checks revealed that Ukachukwu, a former U.S. resident deported in 2022 for immigration offences, had recently obtained residency in Brazil before venturing into drug trafficking.

The anti-narcotics agency also arrested Okolonkwo Ebere Theresa on September 14 at MMIA Terminal 2. She was attempting to board a Qatar Airways flight to Doha with 1.40 kilograms of methamphetamine concealed in her butt pad underwear.

During interrogation, she admitted to being recruited despite running a second-hand clothing and POS business in Enugu.

At the NAHCO export shed, Lagos, NDLEA operatives intercepted 40 wraps of methamphetamine (2.3kg) hidden in food items bound for Hong Kong on September 15, leading to the arrest of 59-year-old Umelo Ifeanyi Venatus.

Similarly, on September 18, a courier company in Lagos was raided, where seven phone chargers destined for New Zealand were found to conceal 257 grams of cocaine.

NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd.), commended operatives for what he described as “significant milestones” in the agency’s fight against drug trafficking networks.

“These arrests and seizures represent a determined effort to dismantle drug trafficking organizations targeting our productive youth population with illicit substances,” Marwa said. He stressed that the agency would continue to combine enforcement with preventive approaches to safeguard Nigeria’s future.