The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intercepted illegal substances cleverly concealed within flight boarding passes.
In a post on X accompanied by images of the passes, Femi Babafemi, NDLEA spokesperson, revealed that operatives in Lagos recently discovered this new tactic used to hide dangerous drugs.
He warned parents, guardians, and the general public to remain vigilant—especially regarding deliveries handled by dispatch riders—as traffickers are increasingly disguising narcotics within ordinary items.
“These may look like ordinary flight boarding passes, but hidden inside them are harmful substances such as Colos,” he wrote.
“This is one of the new techniques used to distribute illicit drugs across city centres, as uncovered by NDLEA operatives in Lagos.
“The merchants of death are becoming more creative with their packaging, but the NDLEA remains several steps ahead.”
In a statement issued on Sunday, Babafemi identified the suspect as Oluchi Celestine, who was arrested in Lekki on November 18 with 2.6 kilogrammes of Colorado, a synthetic cannabis variant, packaged in branded containers and some stuffed inside flight boarding cards.
He added that, on the same day in Onitsha, Anambra state, NDLEA personnel detained two members of a drug trafficking network after they attempted to collect 5.40 kilogrammes of methamphetamine; 10.70 kilogrammes of Loud; 16 grammes of cocaine; 200 grammes of phenacetin; 200 grammes of methcathinone; and 100 grammes of caffeine concealed in pressure machine cylinders imported from South Africa.
According to him, the first suspect, 30-year-old electrical appliances dealer Ebulue Lotanwa Uzochukwu, was arrested at a logistics company, followed by 51-year-old South Africa returnee Christopher Michael Ndibuisi, who arrived shortly afterward.
The consignment, which had landed at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) import shed on November 13 with airway bill number 118-12882973 via a Tag-Angola flight, was seized based on credible intelligence, prompting a follow-up operation that resulted in both arrests in Onitsha.
In a separate operation on November 20 at the Lagos airport, NDLEA officers detected a brake servo vehicle component used to hide 48 pellets and one block of cocaine weighing 2.30 kilogrammes, among other auto parts bound for Gabon.
A freight agent, Ameh Solomon, who presented the shipment, was taken into custody, while a follow-up action at ASMPDA market in Ojo, Lagos, led to the arrest of auto parts dealer Nwafor Tochukwu Boniface.
In Kogi state, NDLEA operatives on November 17 intercepted a trailer carrying 4,700 kilogrammes of skunk in Kabba. Three suspects—Solomon Dauda, Friday Garba, and Daniel Danladi—were arrested, and a subsequent operation in Jos on November 21 led to the capture of the alleged mastermind, Marcus Danladi Dan Mangu.
NDLEA chairman Buba Marwa praised the officers for their efforts and urged them nationwide to sustain the agency’s balanced approach to drug control.