NDLEA Busts Syndicate Planting Illicit Drugs In Passengers’ Bags In Anambra Motor Parks
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has uncovered a criminal syndicate that secretly plants illicit drugs in the luggage of unsuspecting passengers travelling through motor parks in Anambra State.
The agency said the racket was exposed following the interception of a consignment of methamphetamine in a commercial Sienna bus travelling from Nnewi, Anambra State, to Abuja.
According to a statement issued on Sunday by NDLEA's Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, operatives of the agency in the Federal Capital Territory, working jointly with their counterparts in Anambra, intercepted the vehicle at Abaji, Abuja, on June 20, 2026.
A search of the bus led to the recovery of a waybill package containing a whitish substance suspected to be methamphetamine, concealed inside a black nylon bag and hidden in a sack of clothes bearing the phone number of the intended recipient.
The agency said a follow-up operation led to the arrest of the supposed recipient, Mrs Gloria Peter, at Utako Motor Park in Abuja. However, she strongly denied any knowledge or ownership of the package found in her luggage.
Her denial prompted investigators to trace the origin of the package to Nnewi, where loaders of the Sienna bus were arrested. One of the loaders reportedly confessed to placing the drug package inside the woman's bag on the instruction of the driver, identified as Abdurrazak Isah.
During interrogation, the driver allegedly revealed that one of the passengers, Onyebuchi Victor Okoye, was the actual owner of the illicit consignment. Okoye was subsequently arrested in Abuja during another follow-up operation.
The seized methamphetamine weighed 467.7 grams.
In a separate operation, operatives of the NDLEA's Special Operations Unit arrested a 57-year-old suspect, Ikechukwu Uwakwe, at a motor park in Iddo, Lagos, with 209.5 kilograms of "Scottish Loud", a potent strain of cannabis.
The illicit consignment, according to the agency, was being transported to Enugu when it was intercepted on June 27.
The anti-narcotics agency also arrested two nationals of the Benin Republic, Hossou Tito Julien, 30, and Mancellim Dossou, 19, alongside a Nigerian, Jackson ThankGod, following intelligence reports.
The suspects were apprehended on the Mile 2 Bridge in Lagos after operatives intercepted their truck conveying a large quantity of illicit drugs from Togo through the Benin Republic.
A thorough search of the vehicle uncovered 558,900 pills of Tramadol 250mg concealed in a specially fabricated compartment.
Similarly, two suspects, Lucky Abonga and Osas Azamobo, were arrested along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway on June 26 while transporting 118 kilograms of skunk hidden among legitimate goods in a truck heading to Onitsha, Anambra State.
In another raid in Lagos, NDLEA operatives arrested Helen Ese Idiji, 40, and Rashidat Sa'adullah, 53, at No. 15 Olumokun Street, Amukoko, recovering 28.8 kilograms of skunk from the suspects.
Investigations revealed that Helen allegedly used Rashidat's residence as a storage facility for illicit drugs before distributing them to customers.
Reacting to the operations, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), commended officers and men of the agency's MMIA, Special Operations Unit, Apapa, FCT, Anambra and Lagos Commands for the successful arrests and seizures.
Marwa also praised the commands for balancing drug supply reduction efforts with the agency's War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation campaign, urging officers across the country to sustain the momentum in the fight against illicit drug trafficking and abuse.