NDLEA busts cocaine trafficking syndicate exploiting pilgrims for Hajj

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has dismantled a criminal syndicate trafficking cocaine to Saudi Arabia under the pretense of sponsoring Muslim pilgrims for Hajj. The agency disclosed this development on Sunday, announcing the arrest of three key members of the cartel in Kano State.

NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi identified the arrested masterminds as Abubakar Muhammad, Abdulhakeem Muhammed Tijjani, and Muhammad Aji Shugaba. They were apprehended on May 27 and 28, 2025, following the earlier detention of two pilgrims caught attempting to smuggle drugs through the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA).

The pilgrims, Ibrahim Umar Mustapha and Muhammad Siraj Shifado, were intercepted on May 26 while boarding Ethiopian Airlines flight ET 940 to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Acting on credible intelligence, NDLEA operatives conducted body scans on the suspects, which confirmed they had ingested illegal substances.

Placed under excretion observation, each suspect excreted 45 wraps of cocaine, totaling 90 wraps weighing 1.04kg. Further investigations led to the arrest of the cartel leaders believed to be behind the smuggling operation.

In a related operation at the same airport, NDLEA arrested 60-year-old businessman Chinedu Leonard Okigbo on May 28 while attempting to board a Qatar Airways flight (QR1432) to Iran. He was found to have ingested 65 wraps of cocaine weighing 1.41kg.

At the Port Harcourt Ports Complex (PHPC), Onne, NDLEA operatives, working with Customs and other security agencies, intercepted seven containers between May 28 and 30, which were found to contain:

825,200 bottles of codeine-based syrup and Trodol, with a street value of ₦5.78 billion, and

5.1 million pills of tapentadol (225mg), worth ₦3.57 billion.

The total street value of the seized opioids amounts to ₦9.35 billion.

Kano–Maiduguri Road (May 30): NDLEA operatives intercepted Abubakar Hussein (42) and Sahabi Adamu (53) with $900,000 in suspected counterfeit currency. The suspects and the cash have been handed over to appropriate authorities for further investigation.

Ngurore–Yola Road, Adamawa (May 27): Operatives of the NDLEA seized 390 compressed blocks of skunk cannabis weighing 275.3kg from an abandoned Toyota Sienna vehicle with registration number YLA-408GG.

Ilorin, Kwara State (May 31): A notorious female drug dealer, Alhaja Mutiat Abdul-Fatai, was arrested in the Oja Oba area. Various quantities of tramadol, flunitrazepam, and codeine-based syrups were recovered during the operation.

In line with its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) initiative, the NDLEA also carried out sensitization lectures in several schools across the country, including:

  • Government Day Senior Secondary School, Kwasarawa, Katsina

  • Corpus Christi College, Achi, Enugu

  • Epignosis Standard College, Onitsha, Anambra

  • Government Girls Secondary Schools in Utai (Kano) and Calabar (Cross River)

NDLEA Chairman/CEO Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd) commended the officers and operatives of the MAKIA, PHPC, Kano, Kwara, and Adamawa Commands for their commendable efforts. He also lauded the agency’s nationwide commands for maintaining a balance between drug supply reduction and demand reduction through strategic operations and awareness campaigns.

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