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KEY POINTS

• NDLEA arrested a Lagos-based businessman at Kano airport after he swallowed 95 wraps of cocaine weighing 1.589kg while attempting to travel to China.

• The suspect allegedly turned to drug trafficking to fund a personal construction project in Enugu State.

• The arrest is part of wider NDLEA operations that led to major drug seizures and arrests across several states.

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, has arrested a Lagos-based businessman, Nwabueze Nicholas Izueke, for attempting to traffic 1.589 kilograms of cocaine by swallowing 95 wraps of the illicit substance.

According to the agency, the suspect was intercepted at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA) while undergoing outward passenger clearance for an international flight.

The arrest, NDLEA said, is part of its ongoing nationwide crackdown on drug trafficking networks and substance abuse.

In a statement issued by the NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, the 62-year-old suspect was arrested on Saturday, January 31, 2026, as he prepared to travel to China via Addis Ababa on Ethiopian Airlines flight ET940.

During a routine body scan, NDLEA operatives detected signs consistent with ingestion of illicit drugs.

“He tested positive during the body scan and was immediately placed under excretion observation,” the agency said.

While under observation, Izueke expelled a total of 95 jumbo-sized wraps of cocaine in seven separate excretions, confirming that the hard drug had been concealed inside his stomach.

NDLEA disclosed that the suspect claimed to be a clothing and auto spare parts dealer based in Lagos.

According to the agency, Izueke confessed that he ventured into drug trafficking in a bid to raise funds to complete a residential building he is constructing in his hometown, Iwollo, in Enugu State.

Major seizures recorded across multiple states

The agency said the Kano airport arrest was one of several significant operations carried out nationwide in recent days.

In the Federal Capital Territory, NDLEA operatives recovered 627.7 kilograms of skunk, a potent strain of cannabis, from a makeshift warehouse in Kubwa. Officers also foiled attempts to transport methamphetamine concealed in MP3 speakers from Enugu to Abuja and Kaduna.

In Taraba State, intelligence-led patrols intercepted 1.8 kilograms of methamphetamine hidden inside packs of yoghurt at a checkpoint, while the drugs were being moved toward Adamawa State.

In Ibadan, Oyo State, NDLEA officers arrested a suspected drug kingpin linked to the production of Colorado, a synthetic variant of cannabis. The operatives recovered precursor chemicals, large quantities of skunk, substantial cash, and two vehicles.

In Kwara State, nearly 400,000 capsules of tramadol were intercepted in a fuel tanker heading to Maiduguri. In Imo State, a couple was arrested with 203 kilograms of skunk, while in Ondo State, 420 kilograms of the substance were recovered from a bush in Ikun Akoko.