The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has smashed a transnational drug cartel operating between Nigeria, the United Kingdom, Brazil, Australia, and the United Arab Emirates, arrested three of its leaders in Lagos and seized multi-billion-naira illicit consignments across the country.
The breakthrough followed the interception on Tuesday, 26th August 2025, of 76 cartons of textiles bound for Sydney, Australia at the export shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos. A thorough search uncovered 16 blocks of cocaine weighing 17.9kg, concealed in lace fabrics and packed with charms to evade detection. The consignment, valued at over N5.3 billion, led to the arrest of freight agent, Olashupo Michael Oladimeji.
Subsequent investigations exposed other leaders of the cartel. Muaezee Ademola Ogunbiyi, described as the Nigerian coordinator of the group, was arrested on 3rd September in Ikeja GRA. A search of his Lekki home yielded 21 parcels of Canadian Loud weighing 10.9kg and a pump-action rifle with cartridges. Another member, Shola Adegoke, was later arrested at the cartel’s packaging hub in Ikeja GRA, where NDLEA recovered 17 parcels of Loud weighing 9.6kg from a Range Rover SUV.
Findings further revealed that the cartel’s overall ringleader, Adebisi Ademola Omoyele, popularly known as Mr. Bee, currently operate from Dubai, UAE. Both Ogunbiyi and Adegoke had criminal histories in the United Kingdom. Ogunbiyi served a 14-year sentence for murder, while Adegoke was jailed in 2021 for drug trafficking before being deported in 2024.
In a related development, NDLEA operatives at MMIA on 5th September arrested Gabriel Michael, a Milan-based Nigerian, with 24,480 tramadol pills concealed in his luggage while attempting to board an Air France flight to Italy.
On 4th September, NDLEA and Customs operatives at the Onne Port, Rivers State, intercepted a 40ft container with 160,200 bottles of codeine syrup concealed in ceramic sanitary wares. The shipment, tracked by NDLEA’s special operations unit, was valued at over N1.1 billion.
Across the country, NDLEA intensified its offensive against illicit drug trafficking. In Abuja, a dispatch rider was caught with Colorado, while in Lagos, separate operations led to the arrest of two suspects with 625kg of Loud and Colos and a couple with 24.4kg of skunk. In Kogi, a man was arrested with skunk concealed in his car, while follow-up raids in Kaduna and Edo yielded hundreds of kilograms more. In Anambra, tramadol pills were seized, just as operatives in Niger State intercepted 342kg of skunk along Minna–Bida road. In Taraba, NDLEA destroyed 18,750kg of skunk cultivated on 7.5 hectares of farmland, with two suspects arrested during the operation.
Chairman/Chief Executive of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd), commended the officers of the MMIA, PHPC, Lagos, FCT, Anambra, Taraba, Kaduna, Kogi, and Niger Commands for their dedication and resilience. He urged them and their colleagues nationwide to intensify the Agency’s balanced approach in the fight against drug trafficking and abuse.
