Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a Brazil-based Nigerian businessman, Uche Franklin Onyekwere, at the arrival hall of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, for allegedly concealing parcels of cocaine on his body and in the soles of his footwear. The 47-year-old suspect was apprehended on January 29, 2026, during passenger clearance on a South African Airways flight arriving from Brazil via Johannesburg, following processed intelligence.

A body scan reportedly confirmed drug concealment. A subsequent strip search led to the discovery of a large wrap of white powdery substance, later confirmed as cocaine, tied around his right thigh. Two additional wraps were found hidden in the sole of his flat shoes. In total, three large wraps of cocaine with a gross weight of 1.60 kilograms were recovered from his body and footwear.

During preliminary interrogation, Onyekwere said he bought the drugs in Brazil with the intention of reselling them in Nigeria to raise capital for his business and to finance the naming ceremony of his newborn child. He claimed to have lived in Brazil since 2008 and to have operated a toy business for about nine years.
Separately, at Tin Can seaport in Lagos, NDLEA officers, in a joint examination with Customs and other security agencies on January 28, uncovered 55 jumbo bags of Canadian Loud, a strong strain of cannabis, weighing 1,183 kilograms. The shipment, imported from Montreal, Canada, was concealed inside two vehicles, a Hyundai SUV and a Toyota Matrix, in a container.

In Niger State, NDLEA operatives acting on intelligence in the early hours of January 26 intercepted a long-haul truck marked T 31589 LA along the Dei-Dei–Abuja expressway. Three suspects, Andy Chidogu, 49; Kenneth Ogene, 45; and Sadiq Olanrewaju, 27, were arrested for conveying 176 bags of skunk weighing 2,735 kilograms, along with one kilogram of Colorado, a synthetic cannabis, hidden in the vehicle.

Investigations showed that Ogene, the driver, left Lagos on January 23 with 800 bags of flour bound for Ekpoma, Edo State, arriving on January 24. In Ekpoma, he allegedly negotiated to transport the 176 bags of skunk and one kilogram of Colorado for N1.7 million.
In another operation in Edo State on January 27, NDLEA officers arrested Shaibu Yusuf along the Auchi–Abuja express road while he was reportedly seeking a vehicle to transport 66 bags of skunk concealed in charcoal, weighing 792 kilograms, to Katsina.

Also in Edo, operatives supported by Nigerian Army personnel on January 28 raided a cannabis farm at Ebora camp, Ilushi, in Esan South East Local Government Area. A total of 4,063.675 kilograms of skunk was destroyed across more than 1.6 hectares of farmland, while 328 kilograms of processed cannabis and seeds were recovered. Four suspects, Jeremiah Nwodeh, 46; Chukwudi Pius, 33; Pius Ogaba, 46; and Onora Kwene, 35, were arrested at the site.

In Anambra State, NDLEA officers on January 28 intercepted a cement truck at Upper Iweka, Onitsha, en route to Nkpor.A search revealed 345.2 kilograms of skunk concealed beneath bags of cement. One of the occupants, Abum Okeke, 42, was arrested. M eanwhile, two suspects, Tunde Ogundele, 39, and Soji Elegbelye, 46, were arrested on January 26 at Eleyewo community in Akure North area of Ondo State in connection with the seizure of 473 kilograms of skunk.

On the same day in Kano, NDLEA operatives arrested Abdullahi Usman, 45, at Murtala Mohammed Way, recovering 12,500 ampoules of pentazocine injection from him.
Caption: Suspects with seized item