A 38-year-old Nigerian businessman, Philip Tunde, has landed in NDLEA custody after allegedly using compensation paid to him for an industrial injury in Italy, where he lost the tips of two fingers, to finance a cocaine shipment to the country.
Tunde was arrested on Sunday, September 27, 2026, at the joint screening point of Terminal 2, Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos, while preparing to board a Royal Air Maroc flight to Milan, Italy.
The Director, Media and Advocacy of the NDLEA, Femi Babafemi, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday, saying operatives recovered 4.80kg of cocaine concealed in the soles of eight pairs of trainers and canvas shoes and the railings of four travelling bags.
According to Babafemi, a thorough search of the suspect’s luggage led to the recovery of 16 parcels of a white, powdery substance hidden in the soles of the shoes and another 195 wraps concealed in the railings of the travelling bags.
He said the substances tested positive for cocaine, adding that during interrogation, Tunde claimed he paid N16 million in cash for the cocaine concealed in the shoes, while the consignment hidden in the bags was meant for delivery to his partner in Italy.
“He said he raised the money from compensation paid him for an injury at a plastic manufacturing company in Italy, in which he lost the tips of two fingers,” Babafemi said.
The NDLEA spokesperson said the arrest was part of a series of intelligence-led operations across the country that also led to the interception of large consignments of illicit drugs at the Apapa, Tincan Island and Onne ports.
At the Apapa Port in Lagos, Babafemi said NDLEA operatives, acting on intelligence and working with Customs and other stakeholders, recovered 161 parcels of Thai Loud weighing 124kg from a container that arrived from Bangkok, Thailand.
He said the consignment, concealed in two refrigerators and two cartons, was valued at N372 million.
At the Onne Port in Rivers State, two watch-listed containers were subjected to joint examination, leading to the recovery of 22kg of Loud and 109,600 bottles of codeine-based cough syrup weighing 16,440kg.
Babafemi said the consignments recovered at the Onne Port had a combined street value of N833.2 million, while another container intercepted at the Tincan Island Port contained 2,595 parcels of Canadian Loud weighing 1,297.5kg and valued at over N3.8 billion.
He said the operations formed part of the agency’s sustained efforts to disrupt drug trafficking networks and prevent illicit substances from entering or leaving the country.
In Osun State, NDLEA operatives destroyed 20,234kg of skunk found on 8.0936 hectares of cannabis farm in Area 4, Ife South Local Government Area, while a suspect, Agbo Dennis, 41, was arrested in Plateau State with 385kg of skunk.
Babafemi also said operatives in Lagos recovered 209,000 tablets of tramadol from an unoccupied compound at Divine Estate, Ago Palace, while Ekundayo Taiwo, 23, was arrested in a follow-up operation at Ladipo Spare Parts Market.
In Kogi State, NDLEA officers intercepted a Lagos-Abuja-bound commercial bus along the Okene-Lokoja Highway and recovered two sachets of methamphetamine weighing 1kg from a waybill package. A follow-up operation led to the arrest of the alleged owner of the consignment, Michael Chukwuememka Uzoma, 29, in Utako, Abuja.
In Edo State, operatives recovered 32.2kg of cannabis sativa from the residence of a suspect, Saturday Omimi, 35, at Uyere community, Ovia North-East Local Government Area, while another suspect, Osazuwa Iyabor Michael, 23, was arrested at Auchi Bypass, Benin City, with various quantities of Loud, Colorado, tramadol, methamphetamine, Swinol and Molly.
Babafemi further disclosed that a 47-year-old fugitive, Idris Mohammed Kurra, who had jumped bail in a drug case before the Federal High Court, Jos, in December 2020, was arrested six years later.
He said Kurra was facing trial in connection with the possession and dealing in 198kg of skunk before he allegedly jumped bail and evaded arrest until his recent arrest.
Commending the officers and men involved in the operations, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), urged them and their colleagues across the country to sustain the agency’s fight against drug trafficking networks.
Marwa also urged the operatives to maintain the agency’s balanced approach to drug control, combining enforcement operations with preventive measures such as the War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation campaign.
