The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has dismantled two major cocaine cartels behind six United Kingdom-bound shipments, arresting a suspected drug baron, Hammed Ode, and five others.
The arrests followed weeks of coordinated intelligence operations that uncovered how the syndicates concealed cocaine in stainless cups, body cream, and hair gel containers to evade detection.
The operations were carried out in Lagos, between mid-September and early October 2025, during which NDLEA operatives at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, intercepted 20.5 kilograms of cocaine concealed in export consignments destined for the UK.
NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, said in a statement on Sunday that the breakthrough began on September 16, when officers seized 174 parcels of cocaine weighing 13.4kg hidden in cocoa butter containers. Further investigations led to the arrest of Ode, who confessed to owning the consignment valued at over ₦150 million and claimed to be a real estate developer.
Five other suspects including Smith David Korede, Ogunbiyi Oluseye Taiwo, and Popoola Francis Olumuyiwa were also arrested for attempting to smuggle various cocaine consignments to the United Kingdom using similar concealment methods.
In separate operations, NDLEA operatives destroyed over 24,897 kilograms of cannabis (skunk) on farms in Edo and Osun States, while large quantities of tramadol, codeine syrup, and other narcotics were also seized in Kano, Kwara, Kaduna, Ogun, and Lagos States.
NDLEA Chairman, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended the officers for their professionalism and resilience, vowing that the agency would sustain its offensive against drug cartels nationwide.
“We will continue to dismantle every identified drug network from the couriers to their leaders because every arrest and seizure means innocent lives saved,” Marwa said.
