Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a former international footballer, Segun George Hunkarin, and four others in connection with an attempt to smuggle 22.6kg of cocaine and methamphetamine through major airports and border points across the country.
Hunkarin was apprehended alongside his associate, businessman Ntoruka Emmanuel Chinedu, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos. Chinedu, known for frequent trips between Nigeria and Turkey to trade in clothing and foodstuffs, was arrested on Tuesday, June 24, 2025, upon his arrival from Turkey via Ethiopian Airlines through Addis Ababa. A search of his carry-on bag revealed 37 wraps of cocaine weighing 800 grams.
Investigations revealed that Chinedu had collected the illicit drugs from another person during his stopover in Addis Ababa. Hunkarin, who once played professional football in Brazil, was arrested while waiting at the airport car park to collect the consignment. During interrogation, he admitted to trafficking drugs twice in the past from Brazil to Ethiopia but claimed he had never brought drugs into Nigeria.
In another arrest at MMIA on Friday, June 27, NDLEA operatives intercepted Amen Okoro Godstime, a Europe-based freight and logistics businessman. Okoro was caught attempting to smuggle 5,000 pills of tramadol 225mg, disguised as anti-malarial drugs such as Lonart, Amatem, and Aluktem. He was apprehended during passenger screening for a Royal Air Maroc flight to Spain. Okoro confessed that upon arrival in Spain, he planned to take a train to France, where he resides, before shipping the drugs to Italy for sale.
Meanwhile, at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport (AIIA), Enugu, NDLEA operatives arrested Ezenwaka Chibuzor Emmanuel, a 38-year-old bar attendant based in Maputo, Mozambique. He was found with 17 cardboard-sized parcels of methamphetamine weighing 17.5kg and three parcels of cocaine weighing 3.05kg. The drugs were concealed in bedsheets packed in his luggage. He had arrived from Johannesburg via Addis Ababa on an Ethiopian Airlines flight.
Also on the same flight, 54-year-old Azu Follygan Kpodar, who arrived from São Paulo, Brazil, was caught with a plastic liquid soap container marked “YPE” which concealed 1.25kg of liquid cocaine. Kpodar, a toy seller based in Brinquedo, São Paulo, claimed he bought the substance while shopping for his wedding ceremony in Nigeria.
At the Seme border area in Badagry, Lagos, NDLEA operatives on June 24 intercepted a 26-year-old Beninese national, Vode Jean-Luck, attempting to smuggle 69 balls of skunk—a potent strain of cannabis—totaling 29.5kg into Nigeria from the Benin Republic.
In Kwara State, a notorious drug dealer identified as Mary Bolanle Oladele, popularly known as Iya Nafi, was arrested during a raid on her base in Omu-Aran, Irepodun Local Government Area. Recovered from her premises were various quantities of skunk, tramadol, and flunitrazepam.
Similarly, in Warri, Delta State, a 72-year-old grandmother, Mrs. Christy Ejaro, was arrested at the Niger CAT area on June 24. NDLEA operatives recovered several sachets of skunk packaged for street-level retail from her residence.
Beyond enforcement, the NDLEA continued its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) advocacy, with sensitization lectures conducted in schools across the country, including Yakubawa Model Primary School in Katsina; Police Secondary School in Igboora, Oyo; Divine Favour International School in Bende, Abia; Mater Dei College in Udi, Enugu; and Fiyinfolu High School in Ikole-Ekiti, among others.
Commending the agency’s operatives in Lagos (MMIA and Seme), Enugu (AIIA), Delta, and Kwara states, NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), praised their vigilance and commitment. He also lauded the nationwide efforts to balance drug supply reduction with preventive advocacy and public enlightenment.