The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has dismantled an international organized criminal group (IOCG) operating across Nigeria, the United Kingdom, Brazil, Australia and the United Arab Emirates. NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, said the agency’s operatives carried out a two‑week intelligence‑led operation in Lagos that resulted in the arrest of three key cartel leaders.
The operation began on 26 August 2025 when NDLEA officers at Murtala Muhammed International Airport intercepted a shipment of 76 cartons of textile materials bound for Sydney, Australia. A thorough search revealed 16 blocks of cocaine weighing 17.9 kg concealed in the lace, together with local charms intended to evade detection. The seized cocaine is valued at over 5.3 million Australian dollars (approximately N5.3 billion). Subsequent investigations led to the arrest of Muaezee Ademola Ogunbiyi, the group’s Nigerian leader, who was found with 21 parcels of Canadian Loud cannabis and a double‑barreled pump‑action gun. Another leader, Shola Adegoke, was captured at a house in Ikeja GRA where the group packaged illicit drugs for export. During the raid, a black Range Rover SUV and a black Toyota Venza were also recovered.
In a related arrest, the NDLEA announced that Gabriel Michael, a Milan‑based Nigerian, attempted to board an Air France flight to Italy with 24,480 tramadol pills concealed on his person. A joint examination of a 40‑ft container at the West Africa Container Terminal in Port Harcourt uncovered 160,200 bottles of codeine‑based syrup, estimated to be worth over N1.1 billion on the street.
Additional seizures included 3.1 kg of “Colorado,” a synthetic cannabis strain, in Abuja, and 625 kg of Canadian Loud and Ghana Loud in Lagos. The agency also detained several individuals linked to these finds, among them a couple seized with 24.4 kg of “skunk” cannabis and a suspect found with 11,000 tramadol pills in Anambra State.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd), commended the officers involved and urged them to intensify their efforts in the ongoing fight against drug trafficking and organized crime. The dismantling of the IOCG and the series of arrests and seizures underscore the NDLEA’s commitment to combating drug trafficking in Nigeria and beyond.
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