The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) on Sunday announced that its operatives intercepted a consignment of Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis, hidden inside duvets and packaged for export to the United Kingdom.
The seizure was made at the cargo shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos.
NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi revealed that the discovery, made on Tuesday, January 21, 2025, led to the arrest of two suspects: Adakole Sunday and Austin Balogun.
“Six parcels of the psychoactive substance weighing 3.50 kilograms were concealed within the duvets,” Babafemi said. He added that Austin Balogun, the primary agent behind the operation, admitted he was paid ₦700,000 to arrange the shipment but used most of the money for apartment rent and export handling charges.
In another operation, NDLEA operatives raided a hideout in the Igbo Olumo area of Ikorodu, Lagos, arresting Joseph Oluwasegun Adewale and Biodun Adelakun. Seven liters of skuchies—a psychoactive mixture of black currant, cannabis, and opioids—were recovered.
Other items seized included: Three locally made double-barrel rifles, One locally made double-barrel pistol, One English-made pistol, One locally made single-barrel rifle, Three cartridges, An empty 9mm cartridge and An iron-headed axe
A separate operation in Lagos’ Akala area, Mushin, on Sunday, January 19, resulted in the confiscation of 47kg of skunk (a potent cannabis strain) and 25.46kg of nitrous oxide (laughing gas).
In Ekiti State, NDLEA officers arrested Adepoju Taiwo, 26, on January 23, with 1.95kg of Canadian Loud on Iworoko Road, Ado-Ekiti.
In Kwara State, Auwal Sani was apprehended on January 20 in Bode Saadu, Moro LGA, with 50,000 tramadol pills (225mg) weighing 36.56kg.
Three suspects—Abubakar Lami (45), Abba Sani (35), and Auwal Aliyu (32)—were arrested in Gadar Tamburawa, Kano. Operatives recovered 13.1kg of skunk and 125 liters of suck and die, a new psychoactive substance.
In Gefen Kasa, Dawakin Kudu LGA, a cannabis plantation was discovered and destroyed. A suspect, Sabo Ali Muhammad, 45, was arrested in connection to the farm.
NDLEA continued its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) campaign with sensitization programs across the country. Highlights include lectures in schools such as: Army Children Secondary School, Oyo, Oyo State, Government Day Secondary School, Gwadangwaji, Kebbi State, St. Dominic Comprehensive College, Oron, Akwa Ibom State, District Junior College, Agege, Lagos, Pompomari community, and Damaturu, Yobe State.
NDLEA Chairman and CEO, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended officers in Lagos, Kano, Kwara, and Ekiti for their arrests and seizures. He also praised their counterparts nationwide for intensifying WADA’s advocacy and sensitization efforts.
