Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have foiled multiple drug trafficking attempts across the country, including the arrest of a woman who faked pregnancy to smuggle tramadol and an Ivorian national who excreted 82 wraps of cocaine at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport.
The agency said a 35-year-old Kano-based businesswoman, Rabi Muhammad, was intercepted at the Seme border in Lagos on February 16, 2026, while attempting to cross into Cotonou, Benin Republic. NDLEA officers discovered that her protruding belly was fake. A search revealed she had strapped a pink calabash to her stomach to conceal 3,200 capsules of tramadol intended for sale in Cotonou.
On the same day in Kano, NDLEA operatives arrested a 41-year-old Ivorian, Michael Gohouri, during passenger clearance for an Ethiopian Airlines flight to Milan via Addis Ababa. A body scan confirmed he had ingested illicit substances. He was placed under observation and subsequently excreted 82 wraps of cocaine weighing 1.49 kilograms.
Investigations revealed that Gohouri had arrived in Lagos from Milan on January 17, 2026, travelled between Lagos and Enugu for three weeks, and later moved to Kano where he ingested the drugs in a hotel room. He was reportedly promised €5,000 upon successful delivery of the consignment in Milan. He also claimed to possess both Ivorian and Nigerian ties, including a Nigerian National Identification Number.
In a related development, NDLEA operatives arrested the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Trans Fortress Global Resources, Kolapo Oladapo Raji, in Lekki, Lagos. Raji, 57, who had been on the agency’s watchlist since 2025, was apprehended at his Ikate residence shortly after returning from the United Kingdom.
A search of his apartment led to the recovery of four large bags containing 89.2 kilograms of “Canadian Loud,” a potent strain of cannabis. A 2024 Toyota Hilux was also seized. In his statement, Raji admitted venturing into drug trafficking after financing consignments for an overseas associate and earning substantial profits.
Elsewhere in Lagos, NDLEA arrested two suspects with large quantities of skunk: 56 kilograms at Agbara and 76 kilograms at a motor park in Oshodi.
At the Port Harcourt Ports Complex in Onne, Rivers State, NDLEA officers, in a joint operation with Customs and other security agencies, intercepted 170,900 bottles of codeine-based syrup concealed in a container following intelligence that prompted a 100 percent physical examination.
In Kogi State, operatives recovered 7,300 tramadol pills concealed in sound systems along the Okene-Lokoja highway. A follow-up operation in Zuba, Abuja, led to the arrest of two suspects linked to the consignment.
Major seizures were also recorded in Ondo, Bauchi, Delta and Edo states. In Ondo, two suspects were arrested in Iju forest with a combined 393 kilograms of skunk. In Bauchi, 936 kilograms were seized in Azare town, with additional arrests yielding 85.8 kilograms.
In Delta State, 37 kilograms of skunk were recovered from a suspect in Ughelli, while in Edo State, NDLEA operatives destroyed 1,266.8 kilograms of skunk on three farms in Owan West Local Government Area and recovered 23 kilograms of processed cannabis. Two suspects, including a 68-year-old grandmother, were apprehended.
The agency also sustained its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation campaign in schools and communities nationwide, covering institutions in Oyo, Yobe, Imo, Gombe, Cross River, Kano and Lagos states.
Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended officers across the various commands for their operational successes, noting that the agency remains committed to balancing drug supply reduction with drug demand reduction efforts.