NDLEA Intercepts N6.2bn Worth of ‘Jihadi Drug’ in Ghana Soap, Opioids at Lagos Airport, Arrests Cross-Border Kingpin

• NDLEA operatives intercepted 47,200 pills of Captagon, popularly known as the ‘Jihadi drug’, concealed inside blocks of Ghanaian bathing soap at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.

• The agency also recovered 3.9 million tablets of Tramaking and Tapentadol, with a combined street value of more than N4.6 billion, from four abandoned consignments at the Lagos airport.

• A 49-year-old suspected cross-border drug kingpin, Akinbile Kazeem Aikins, was arrested after arriving from Accra, Ghana, while a US returnee was apprehended in Lekki with a consignment of Loud allegedly imported from the United Kingdom.

• NDLEA operations in Rivers, Ondo and Delta states also led to the seizure of cocaine, heroin, Colorado, 1,069kg of cannabis and more than 176,000 opioid pills in separate raids and interdictions.

August 30, () — Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have intercepted illicit drugs worth more than N6.2 billion in street value in separate operations across the country, including 47,200 pills of Captagon, popularly known as the ‘Jihadi drug’, concealed inside blocks of Ghanaian bathing soap at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos.

The agency in a statement issued on Sunday, said, the seizure, which exposed another method being employed by international drug traffickers to smuggle prohibited substances into Nigeria, was made on Saturday, August 22, 2026, following the arrest of a 49-year-old suspected cross-border drug kingpin, Akinbile Kazeem Aikins.

Aikins, who arrived at the Lagos airport from Accra, Ghana, aboard an African World Airlines flight, was intercepted by NDLEA operatives after his luggage was subjected to a search.

A search of a carton containing local bathing soap, popularly known as “Ghana Soap”, led to the discovery of the 47,200 Captagon pills carefully concealed inside the blocks of soap.

The illicit amphetamine-based drug is estimated to have a street value of more than N1.5 billion.

Captagon has acquired the nickname ‘Jihadi drug’ because of its reported association with armed groups and extremist networks in conflict zones, particularly in the Middle East. The drug has also been linked to illicit financing and the activities of combatants in some conflict areas.

recalls that the latest seizure is not the first time the NDLEA has intercepted Captagon in Nigeria. The agency first announced the interception of the drug in the country in September 2021, when a consignment was seized at the Apapa Port in Lagos.

Following his arrest, Aikins told investigators that the consignment was destined for delivery in the northern part of the country.

N4.6bn Opioids Abandoned at Lagos Airport

In a separate operation at the MMIA, NDLEA operatives recovered 3,900,030 tablets of Tramaking 225mg and Tapentadol 250mg, with a combined gross weight of 2,787.40 kilogrammes and an estimated street value of more than N4.6 billion.

The drugs were discovered in four abandoned consignments at the import shed of the airport after their intended recipients failed to show up to claim them.

Three of the consignments contained a total of 900,000 tablets of Tramaking, weighing 815.40kg. The shipments arrived aboard RwandAir flights from Bangladesh.

The fourth consignment contained 3,000,030 tablets of Tapentadol, weighing 1,972kg, and was brought into the country on a Qatar Airways flight from Amsterdam.

The suspicious consignments were placed under close watch by the NDLEA after no individual appeared to take delivery of them.

They were formally retrieved on Friday, August 28, following a joint examination involving NDLEA operatives, the Nigeria Customs Service and other relevant stakeholders.

US Returnee Arrested With Loud In Lekki

Meanwhile, the NDLEA has arrested a 31-year-old US returnee, Sowunmi David Oludotun, in the Ikate area of Lekki, Lagos State.

Oludotun was arrested on Wednesday, August 19, after he allegedly showed up to take delivery of 3.350kg of Loud, a potent synthetic strain of cannabis imported from the United Kingdom.

NDLEA Raids Rivers Drug Den, Breaks Open Fireproof Safe

In Rivers State, operatives of the agency raided a notorious drug den in the Abuja Down/Up area of Port Harcourt, recovering a fireproof iron safe among other items.

The safe was subsequently cracked open with a welding machine on Tuesday, August 25, revealing 237 grammes of Colorado, 316 grammes of cocaine and 10 grammes of heroin.

1,069kg Cannabis Seized In Ondo

In Ondo State, NDLEA operatives also recorded significant seizures in separate operations.

Three suspects (Oyedele Daniel, 42; Taye Saliu, 36; and Kehinde Saliu, 36), were arrested on Friday, August 28, along the Ipele-Idoani Road with 728kg of skunk, a locally cultivated strain of cannabis.

The suspects were allegedly conveying the illicit consignment in a truck marked KRE 120 XB.

In another operation, two other suspects, Uche Joseph, 35, and Godwin Umeh, 21, were arrested at Aponmu Forest on Wednesday, August 26, with 341kg of the same substance.

The two seizures brought the total quantity of cannabis recovered in the Ondo operations to 1,069kg.

Over 176,000 Opioid Pills Recovered In Delta

In Delta State, the agency said more than 176,000 tablets of assorted opioids, including tramadol and Molly, were recovered in two separate interdiction operations carried out between Wednesday, August 26 and Friday, August 28.

The seizures formed part of a series of operations undertaken by NDLEA commands and formations across the country during the week.

Agency Sustains War Against Drug Abuse Campaign

Beyond arrests and seizures, the NDLEA said it continued its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation campaign in schools, worship centres, workplaces and communities across the country.

The agency said its officers conducted WADA enlightenment lectures for students and staff of Markaz Littahfizul Quran Wal Islamiyyat in Dadin Kowa, Gombe State, as well as Zangina Islamiyyah Alasawa Kurna in Ungogo Local Government Area of Kano State.

The agency also engaged youths participating in an adolescent lifestyle programme organised by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) in Benin City, Edo State.

In Ondo State, the NDLEA command paid a WADA advocacy visit to the state governor, Dr Lucky Aiyedatiwa, while the Taraba State Command similarly visited Governor Agbu Kefas as part of efforts to strengthen state-level collaboration in the fight against substance abuse and illicit drug trafficking.

Marwa Commends Officers, Orders Sustained Crackdown

Commending officers and men of the MMIA, Ondo and Delta commands for the successful operations, NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd), urged personnel across the country to sustain the momentum in the agency’s drug control efforts.

Marwa directed the operatives to maintain pressure on drug traffickers who, he said, were becoming increasingly desperate and innovative in their attempts to move illicit consignments into and around the country. He warned against the use of ordinary household items as concealment methods, following the discovery of Captagon hidden inside Ghanaian bathing soap.

The NDLEA said it would continue to combine enforcement operations, intelligence gathering, public sensitisation and preventive campaigns as part of its balanced approach to tackling illicit drug trafficking and abuse in Nigeria.