NDLEA SEIZES N6.2BN WORTH OF ‘JIHADI DRUG’ AND OPIOIDS AT LAGOS AIRPORT

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has intercepted large consignments of illicit drugs worth more than N6.2bn at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos, including captagon, popularly known as the “Jihadi drug,” and millions of opioid tablets.

The NDLEA disclosed that its operatives at the Lagos airport arrested a 49-year-old suspected cross-border drug kingpin, Akinbile Kazeem Aikins, on August 22, 2026. He reportedly arrived in Lagos from Accra, Ghana, aboard an African World Airlines flight.

During a search of Aikins' luggage, officers discovered 47,200 pills of captagon concealed inside blocks of local bathing soap, commonly known as “Ghana Soap.” The consignment was estimated to be worth more than N1.5bn.

Captagon is an amphetamine-based stimulant that has been widely associated with illicit drug trafficking and has been described as the “Jihadi drug” because of reports linking its use and trafficking to extremist networks in conflict zones.

According to the NDLEA, the suspect claimed after his arrest that he was expected to deliver the consignment to someone in northern Nigeria.

The agency said the seizure was significant because captagon had previously been intercepted in Nigeria in September 2021 at the Apapa Port in Lagos.

In a separate operation at the same airport, NDLEA operatives recovered 3,900,030 tablets of Tramaking 225mg and Tapentadol 250mg, with a combined gross weight of about 2,787.40kg.

The opioid consignments were valued at more than N4.6bn and were discovered among four abandoned consignments at the airport's import shed after nobody appeared to claim them.

The NDLEA said three of the consignments contained 900,000 tablets of Tramaking, weighing 815.40kg. The consignments reportedly arrived from Bangladesh aboard RwandAir flights.

The fourth consignment contained 3,000,030 tablets of Tapentadol, weighing about 1,972kg, and arrived from Amsterdam on a Qatar Airways flight.

The agency said the consignments had been placed under surveillance before they were formally retrieved on August 28 following a joint examination involving NDLEA personnel, the Nigeria Customs Service and other relevant stakeholders.

The Lagos airport operations formed part of a wider series of drug interdiction activities carried out by the NDLEA across several states.

In Lagos, the agency also arrested a 31-year-old United States returnee, Sowunmi David Oludotun, in Ikate, Lekki, after he allegedly arrived to collect 3.350kg of Loud, a potent synthetic strain of cannabis reportedly imported from the United Kingdom.

In Rivers State, NDLEA operatives raided the Abuja Down/Up area of Port Harcourt and recovered a fireproof iron safe containing various illicit substances. After the safe was opened, officers recovered 237g of Colorado cannabis, 316g of cocaine and 10g of heroin.

The agency also reported major seizures in Ondo State, where three suspects were arrested along the Ipele-Idoani Road with 728kg of skunk reportedly recovered from their truck. Two other suspects were arrested at Aponmu Forest with another 341kg of skunk.

In Delta State, more than 176,000 pills of assorted opioids, including tramadol and Molly, were recovered during two separate operations carried out between August 26 and August 28.

NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), commended the officers involved in the operations and directed personnel across the country to sustain pressure on drug traffickers.

Marwa warned that traffickers were becoming increasingly desperate and were adopting new methods to conceal and transport illicit substances.

He specifically urged NDLEA officers to remain vigilant against attempts to hide drugs inside ordinary household products, following the discovery of captagon concealed in soap.

The latest seizures highlight the scale and increasingly sophisticated nature of international drug trafficking operations passing through Nigeria's airports and other entry points.

The NDLEA said it would continue to strengthen intelligence-led operations and collaboration with other security and regulatory agencies to disrupt drug trafficking networks and prevent illicit substances from reaching communities across the country.