The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has arrested a convicted cocaine trafficker who allegedly returned to the illicit drug trade under a new identity and disguised himself as a herbal tea businessman.
The 34-year-old suspect, identified as Dunu Bethel Ebubechukwu, was arrested during a sting operation at Article Market, opposite Trade Fair Market, in the Ojo area of Lagos State, on Friday, September 4, 2026.
His arrest followed intelligence-led investigations into a 1.2kg consignment of cocaine intercepted by NDLEA operatives at a courier company in Lagos on July 31. The consignment was allegedly destined for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, disclosed the development in a statement on Sunday.
According to Babafemi, Ebubechukwu admitted masterminding some illicit drug shipments in the past and discarded his telephone SIM card after learning that the latest consignment had been intercepted.
The agency said further investigation revealed that the suspect had previously been arrested at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, in 2011 after allegedly ingesting 900 grammes of cocaine and 130 grammes of heroin while attempting to travel to Austria.
“He was prosecuted for the crime, convicted and sentenced to five years in jail. He thereafter changed his name to Dunu Bethel Ebubechukwu and returned to the criminal trade,” Babafemi said.
NDLEA operatives subsequently searched the suspect’s residence at Yemishola Street, Ejigbo, Lagos, where they allegedly recovered phone chargers similar to those used to conceal the intercepted cocaine shipment.
The agency said the internal components of the chargers had been removed to create compartments for concealing drugs.
NDLEA seizes 966,200 tramadol tablets
The arrest was part of a wider nationwide crackdown on illicit drug trafficking which, according to the agency, led to major seizures and arrests across several states.
At the Lagos airport, NDLEA operatives recovered 966,200 tablets of tramadol 225mg, with an estimated value of over N1.1bn, concealed among thrift trousers in a 21-carton consignment imported from Pakistan.
Operatives also recovered 57.8kg of Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis, allegedly worth more than N173m in street value.
The substance was reportedly concealed in cartons of disposable hand gloves in a shipment from Singapore that had remained unclaimed for several weeks.
The shipment was examined on Thursday, September 3, in a joint operation involving the NDLEA, Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies.
2.1 tonnes of cannabis found in tanker
In Ondo State, NDLEA operatives intercepted a 20,000-litre fuel tanker allegedly being used to conceal cannabis along the Akoko-Lokoja Expressway.
Babafemi said the tanker, marked MKA 960 XC, was pursued on Friday, September 4, after its driver allegedly refused to stop.
The driver reportedly abandoned the vehicle at a church premises in Ugbe Akoko and escaped into the bush.
A search of the tanker allegedly uncovered a concealed compartment containing 165 bags of cannabis weighing 2,145kg, alongside its legitimate fuel cargo reportedly destined for Jos, Plateau State.
At the Tin Can Island Port in Lagos, operatives also intercepted 598.08kg of cannabis-infused cookies and gummies packed in 890 packets inside a 40-foot container.
The seizure was linked to three suspects — Yashim Dauji, Larry Ifeanyi and Joseph Moji — who had been arrested at the port about a month earlier following the seizure of 842.54kg of cannabis-laced cookies.
Large opioid haul recovered in Adamawa
In Adamawa State, NDLEA operatives recovered 864,000 opioid pills, particularly tramadol, from a residence linked to a fleeing suspect, Patrick KC Frank, in the Damilu-Jambutu axis of Jimeta, Yola North Local Government Area.
The agency said Frank allegedly rammed his Honda Civic into an NDLEA patrol vehicle before fleeing.
In Michika, another suspect, 35-year-old Calistus Ebubechukwu, was arrested with 2kg of methamphetamine.
At the Namtari checkpoint in Mubi, operatives also intercepted Attahiru Hussaini with tramadol and other opioids allegedly concealed in a soap-laden Ford Galaxy bus marked JJM-953XD.
More arrests, seizures across states
The NDLEA said its operations also yielded significant seizures in Lagos, Kogi, Taraba, Kaduna, Bauchi, Ekiti and Enugu states.
In Lagos, operatives recovered 2,386.9kg of cannabis, 350 grammes of cocaine, more than 100kg of assorted grades of tramadol, 9.7 litres of codeine syrup and 4kg of Rohypnol in the Gbaji area.
Two suspects, Damilare Francis and Emeh Emmanuel, were also arrested with 720kg of cannabis in the Agbara area.
In Kogi State, three suspects — Saidu Mustapha, 35; Zaharadeen Salisu, 29; and AbdulSalam Abdullahi, 25 — were arrested with 636kg of cannabis allegedly concealed in chicken manure inside a bus travelling from Owo, Ondo State, to Jos, Plateau State.
In Taraba State, 58-year-old Kelechi Unachukwu was arrested along the Zaki-Biam Road in Wukari Local Government Area with more than 109kg of assorted controlled medicines, including tramadol, diazepam, pentazocine, phenobarbital, nitrazepam, bromazepam and pregabalin.
Meanwhile, NDLEA operatives intercepted a truck loaded with bags of cement along the Zaria-Kano Expressway in Kaduna State and recovered 1,179kg of skunk.
The agency also arrested Hamza Dahiru, 25, in Bauchi in a follow-up operation after the seizure of 322.5kg of cannabis at Deba town in Gombe State.
In Ekiti State, two suspects, Chuks Alex, 50, and Asafa Adekunle, 35, were arrested after operatives discovered and destroyed a four-hectare cannabis farm in Efon-Alaaye forest. A further 117kg of already-harvested skunk was recovered.
In Enugu State, a 20-year-old suspect, Obinna David, was arrested at Ugbema Junction with 40,590 capsules of tramadol.
The NDLEA said its commands across the country also continued public sensitisation activities under its War Against Drug Abuse campaign during the week.
The agency said the campaign included awareness lectures for nursing mothers and nurses in Ogun State, youths in Abia State, as well as staff and concessionaires of the Nigeria LNG terminal in Bonny, Rivers State.
The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), commended personnel involved in the operations for what he described as professionalism and an intelligence-driven approach.
The agency said investigations into the arrested suspects and the various drug seizures were ongoing.
