The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intercepted two drug kingpins attempting to smuggle her0in into Nigeria.
The two drug barons wanted to bring in drugs into Nigeria through the Port Harcourt International Airport (PHIA) and Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos.
The suspects excreted a total of 125 wraps of her0in following their arrests.
Dual Identity Smuggler Caught in Port Harcourt
One of the arrested traffickers, 30-year-old Onyekwonike Elochuckwu Sylvanus, who also uses the alias Kargbo Mohamed Foday with a Sierra Leonean passport, was apprehended on February 2, 2025, at Port Harcourt airport.
He arrived on a Qatar Airways flight from Doha via Abuja and was subjected to a body scan, which confirmed he had ingested illicit substances.
According to the NDLEA, Sylvanus expelled 62 wraps of her0in weighing 1.348 kilograms during five excretions while under observation.
“Our investigation shows that he switches between his Nigerian and Sierra Leonean identities to evade detection during his drug trafficking missions across Thailand, Pakistan, Iran, and West African countries.
“He admitted he turned to drug trafficking in 2017 after his clothing and shoe business collapsed,” an NDLEA official stated.
Second Kingpin Nabbed in Lagos
Another trafficker, 48-year-old James Herbert Chinoso, was arrested at MMIA Lagos on February 1, 2025, upon arrival from Madagascar via Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
After a body scan detected illicit substances, he was placed under observation and subsequently excreted 63 wraps of her0in, totalling 909 grams.
Chinoso revealed that he left Lagos for Madagascar on January 26, 2025, and spent a week before attempting to smuggle the drugs back to Nigeria.
“I used to run a phone accessories business in Liberia, but after it collapsed, I resorted to drug trafficking,” he reportedly confessed.
More drug seizures Across Nigeria
In addition to the airport arrests, NDLEA operatives intercepted other illicit drug consignments such as two parcels of 2.82 kilograms of Loud (a potent cannab!s strain) from the U.S. were seized on February 6 at a courier company.
Also in Kano, operatives arrested Usaini Salisu and Yahaya Mu’azu, both 23, on February 3 at Gadar Tamburawa along Zaria Road.
They were found with 15,396 tramadol pills hidden inside a gas cylinder. In another raid, a female suspect, 35-year-old Chioma Okeke, was caught with 27 blocks of skunk (15kg) in Sabon Gari.
Meanwhile, in Kogi, NDLEA officers intercepted 12,800 tramadol pills heading to Jigawa State on February 8 along the Kabba-Obajana highway, arresting a suspect, 33-year-old Salisu Basiru.
Also, 65 parcels of Colorado (a synthetic cannab!s strain) weighing 1.6kg were recovered from another suspect, Rufai Hassan, 32.
NDLEA Chief Commends Officers
NDLEA Chairman/CEO, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), lauded the efforts of the agency’s operatives across the country.
“The operational successes recorded by our officers in MMIA, PHIA, DOGI, Kano, and Kogi Commands reflect our unwavering commitment to drug supply reduction and demand reduction efforts,” Marwa stated.
Beyond enforcement, NDLEA continued its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitization program, educating students and communities in Ebonyi, Kano, Cross River, Kebbi, and Lagos states.
