The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intercepted two major drug traffickers attempting to smuggle heroin into Nigeria through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos and the Port Harcourt International Airport (PHIA) in Rivers State. The culprits, who had ingested the illicit substances, excreted a total of 125 wraps of heroin after being placed under surveillance.
NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, revealed in a statement on Sunday that the arrests followed high-level intelligence and surveillance operations.
The first suspect, Onyekwonike Elochukwu Sylvanus, 30, who also holds a Sierra Leonean passport under the alias Kargbo Mohamed Foday, was arrested at the Port Harcourt airport on February 2, 2025. He had arrived on a Qatar Airways flight from Doha via Abuja. A body scan confirmed he had ingested drugs, and after five excretions, he expelled 62 wraps of heroin weighing 1.348 kilograms.
Further investigations uncovered that Sylvanus had been trafficking narcotics across Thailand, Pakistan, Iran, and West Africa since 2017, after his once-thriving clothing and shoe business collapsed.
The second suspect, James Herbert Chinoso, 48, was apprehended at the Lagos airport on February 1 upon arrival from Madagascar via Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on an Ethiopian Airlines flight. He later excreted 63 wraps of heroin, totaling 909 grams.
Chinoso confessed that he had initially traveled to Madagascar from Lagos on January 26 and returned a week later with the drugs. He blamed his foray into trafficking on financial struggles after his phone accessories business in Liberia failed.
Beyond the airport busts, NDLEA operatives also intensified their crackdown on illicit drug trafficking across the country.
Courier Interceptions: Officers at a logistics company in Lagos intercepted two parcels containing 2.82 kilograms of Loud, a potent synthetic cannabis strain imported from the United States. Another operation at a different courier firm led to the seizure of 80 ampoules of pentazocine injection (225 grams) concealed in cartons bound for Canada.
Kano Raids: On February 3, NDLEA operatives arrested Usaini Salisu and Yahaya Mu’azu, both 23 years old, at Gadar Tamburawa, Zaria Road. The duo was caught with 15,396 tramadol pills cleverly concealed inside a gas cylinder. The same day, a 35-year-old woman, Chioma Okeke, was apprehended in Sabon Gari, Kano, with 27 blocks of skunk cannabis weighing 15 kilograms.
Kogi State Operation: On February 8, NDLEA officers patrolling the Kabba-Obajana highway intercepted a consignment of 12,800 tramadol pills headed for Shuwarin, Jigawa State, leading to the arrest of 33-year-old Salisu Basiru. At the same checkpoint, Rufai Hassan, 32, was caught transporting 65 parcels of Colorado (1.6 kilograms), another synthetic cannabis variant, also destined for Jigawa.
The NDLEA has reiterated its commitment to dismantling drug trafficking networks operating within and outside Nigeria. These latest arrests underscore the agency’s resolve in cracking down on international drug syndicates and domestic drug distribution chains.
The agency has urged members of the public to report suspicious activities and support efforts to combat drug-related crimes, emphasizing that Nigeria will not be a safe haven for narcotics traffickers.
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