The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intercepted a major drug trafficking syndicate operating across Nigerian airports, arresting a China-based businessman and two Angolan citizens who collectively excreted 236 wraps of cocaine.
In a statement released on Sunday, Femi Babafemi, Director of Media & Advocacy at NDLEA Headquarters, Abuja, detailed the dramatic arrests that unfolded at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, and the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano.
The first suspect, Ibeanu Vincent Chukwudulue, a Nigerian businessman based in China, was arrested on Wednesday while aboard Qatar Airways flight 1432 traveling from Kano to China via Abuja and Doha. Acting on credible intelligence, NDLEA operatives at the Abuja airport demanded that the suspect be deboarded from the aircraft.
"A body scan confirmed that the suspect had ingested illicit drugs," Babafemi stated. "He was placed under observation during which he excreted a total of 52 pellets of cocaine weighing 735.95 grams."
In his statement, Ibeanu revealed he was involved in business on Lagos Island before relocating to Guangzhou, China, in 2024. He did not disclose who recruited him for the trafficking attempt.
Meanwhile, at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, two Angolan nationals—Mbandu Martins Makiadi, 50, and Ngoma Wilson Fernando, 52—were intercepted on the same day at the departure hall screening point. They were undergoing outward clearance for a flight to Istanbul, Turkey, via Addis Ababa on Ethiopian Airlines flight ET940.
When subjected to body scans, both tested positive for ingesting illicit substances and were placed under observation. "While Mbandu excreted a total of 76 wraps weighing 920 grams in seven excretions, Ngoma expelled 108 pellets that weighed 1.33 kilograms in five excretions," Babafemi disclosed.
During interrogation, the suspects, who hail from Hoji Ya Henda in Luanda, Angola's capital, claimed they were recruited by a Luanda-based automobile spare parts dealer who promised to pay them $3,000 each upon successful delivery of the consignments in Turkey.
In a bizarre twist, the NDLEA also thwarted an attempt by a convicted drug kingpin to export cocaine from behind prison walls. Olashupo Michael Oladimeji, currently serving a five-year jail term at the Ikoyi Correctional Centre, Lagos, attempted to export 1.10 kilograms of cocaine concealed in processed cassava granules (Garri) to London, United Kingdom, on a Virgin Atlantic flight.
Oladimeji, who is the CEO of Dimeji Express Logistics, was convicted in 2025 for conspiracy to export 17.90kg of cocaine. Despite his incarceration, he orchestrated a fresh scheme using his company. A staff member, Adedeji Yusuf Gbolahan, was arrested while presenting the consignment for export at the Lagos airport.
Investigations revealed Oladimeji initiated the trafficking scheme from prison and directed Yusuf to pick up the cocaine at a location in Oshodi. NDLEA operatives intercepted the compressed block of cocaine hidden in a sack of Garri inside a carton.
All suspects are in custody and will face prosecution upon conclusion of investigations, the NDLEA confirmed.
#NDLEA #DrugBust #Cocaine #AirportArrest #NigeriaNews #AntiNarcotics #BreakingNews #WarOnDrugs