A 30-year-old Italy-based businessman, Joseph Cyril, has been arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport (AIIA), Enugu, for ingesting 98 wraps of cocaine while attempting to travel to Italy via Addis Ababa and France.
Cyril was arrested at the airport’s departure hall on Sunday, August 2, 2026, during the outward clearance of passengers aboard Ethiopian Airlines flight ET930.
He was subsequently placed under excretion observation, during which he expelled 98 wraps of cocaine weighing 1.510 kilogrammes.
According to the statement signed by Femi Babafemi, Director, Media and Advocacy, NDLEA Headquarters, Abuja, on Sunday, August 9, 2026, investigations revealed that Cyril arrived in Nigeria from Italy on July 13, 2026, and ingested the consignment at a hotel in Awka, Anambra State, before travelling to Enugu to board his flight to Europe.
In his statement, the suspect said he had been doing business in Italy for years before agreeing to traffic the cocaine for €3,500. He reportedly said he intended to use the money to raise funds to relocate to Germany, where his family is based.
Cocaine concealed in phone chargers, backpack intercepted
Meanwhile, NDLEA operatives have thwarted attempts by drug trafficking syndicates to export 1.2kg of cocaine concealed inside 25 pieces of phone chargers destined for Saudi Arabia.
The consignment was intercepted at a courier company in Lagos.
In a separate operation, NDLEA officers on Monday, August 3, stopped an attempt to send 500 grammes of cocaine concealed in the false bottom of a backpack to Italy through another logistics company.
On Tuesday, August 4, operatives also intercepted 2.3kg of Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis, imported from the United States at another shipping company in Lagos.
1,633kg of skunk intercepted in Ondo
In Ondo State, NDLEA officers patrolling the Akure-Ilesha Expressway on Tuesday, August 4, intercepted a truck heading north with 1,633kg of skunk concealed in bags of rice shafts.
Two suspects, 40-year-old Buba Jamilu and 30-year-old Sanusi Ibrahim, who were allegedly transporting the consignment, were arrested.
Earlier, on Monday, August 3, operatives recovered 147kg of skunk from Ita Ogbolu Forest during a raid operation.
NDLEA raids drug warehouse in Oyo
In Oyo State, operatives acting on credible intelligence raided a drug warehouse at Elebure village in Orire Local Government Area on Monday, August 3.
The operation led to the recovery of 731.03kg of illicit drugs and the arrest of 57-year-old Felicia Thompson.
Her alleged partner, Thompson Vincent Nwaka, is currently at large.
In Edo State, NDLEA operatives, supported by soldiers, recovered 65 jumbo bags of skunk weighing 604.5kg at Ewe Luleha in Owan West Local Government Area on Wednesday, August 5.
Drug dealers arrested in Abia, Lagos
In Abia State, a drug joint operator, 31-year-old Chibuike Charles, was arrested during a raid at his Samec by Powerline base in Osisioma Local Government Area on Thursday, August 6.
Seven kilogrammes of skunk were recovered from the location.
Similarly, a wanted drug dealer, Adome Claude Sikuru, was arrested at the Fibre Market drug jungle in Badagry, Lagos, on Saturday, August 8, following a three-month manhunt.
At the time of his arrest, 88.5kg of skunk was recovered from him.
309.4kg of cannabis-infused cookies, gummies seized at Tincan Port
At the Tincan Port Complex in Lagos, NDLEA officers, working with the Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies, discovered 73 cartons containing 442 packets of cookies and gummies infused with cannabis.
The products, weighing a total of 309.4kg, were discovered during the joint examination of a 40-foot container on Tuesday, August 4.
A suspect, Larry Nnaji, has been arrested in connection with the seizure.
NDLEA intensifies WADA sensitisation
The NDLEA also said its commands and formations across the country continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation campaigns in schools, worship centres, workplaces and communities during the week.
Among the activities were WADA enlightenment lectures for students and staff of Islamic High School, Saki, Oyo State; Holy Ghost Academy, Nkpor, Anambra State; and Madarasatul Hidayatul Aulad Islamiyya, Gaya, Kano State.
The Rivers State Command also paid a WADA advocacy visit to the management of Ignatius Ajuru University of Education in Port Harcourt.
Commending officers and men of the DOGI, AIIA, Ondo, Oyo, Edo, Abia, Seme and Tincan Commands for their successful operations, the NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd), urged personnel across the country to sustain the agency’s balanced approach to drug control.
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