The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a previously convicted drug trafficker, Nwobodo Chidiebere Basil, alongside three others0, over an attempt to export cocaine concealed in liquid starch sachets to the United Kingdom.
In a statement issued on Sunday, December 28, 2025, the agency said operatives intercepted 75 parcels of c@caine weighing 1.50 kilograms at the export shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos.
The drugs were hidden inside factory-sealed sachets of cold-water starch.
NDLEA officials disclosed that three cargo agents, Jubrin Firdausi Hassana, Kuku Daniel Oluwasegun and Igwe Chioma Jane, were arrested on Saturday, December 20, 2025, while attempting to process the consignment for shipment to the UK.
Further investigations later identified 37-year-old Nwobodo Chidiebere Basil as the mastermind behind the operation.
Basil was subsequently arrested in a follow-up operation on Sunday, December 21, at a popular relaxation centre in Ikeja, where he had gone on a date with his girlfriend.
According to the agency’s criminal database, Basil was previously arrested in May 2023 after 30.10 kilograms of methamphetamine concealed in powdered custard containers were seized from a consolidated cargo bound for London at the same airport.
He was arraigned before the Federal High Court in charge number FHC/L/337C/2023, convicted, and sentenced to five years’ imprisonment with an option of a ₦7 million fine and one month of community service, effective December 4, 2023.
NDLEA said Basil paid the fine but soon returned to drug trafficking, leading to his latest arrest.
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