Two octogenarians—80-year-old Ayuba Ashiru and 82-year-old Mrs. Uloma Uchechi Sunday, along with her 32-year-old daughter, Chisom Uchechi—top the list of suspects arrested in a series of nationwide drug raids conducted by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA). The operations also led to the interception of opioids valued at over N3.2 billion at Apapa Seaport in Lagos and the Port Harcourt Port Complex in Onne, Rivers State.
Ashiru, a previously convicted drug trafficker who served a 10-year jail term between 2014 and 2024, was re-arrested on Wednesday, 14th May 2025, at Barazana Street in the Dogarawa area of Sabon Gari LGA, Kaduna State. Acting on credible intelligence, NDLEA operatives recovered 2.3 kilograms of skunk—packaged in retail-sized nylons and paper wraps—from him. He reportedly confessed to being in the drug trade for the past 46 years.
In Abia State, on Saturday, 17th May, NDLEA officers raided the residence of Mrs. Uloma Uchechi Sunday in Umuaguma Ntigha Uzor village. Recovered at the scene were various quantities of methamphetamine, tramadol, and skunk, a potent strain of cannabis, along with a cash exhibit of N130,600. Both the grandmother and her daughter, Chisom, were arrested. Mrs. Sunday confessed that she and her daughter took over the illicit business after her son, the original operator, died two years ago.
At the Port Harcourt Ports Complex in Onne, a container flagged by the agency yielded a shocking 3,000,000 pills of tapentadol and carisoprodol royal 225mg, worth N2.1 billion in street value. The seizure occurred on Wednesday, 14th May, during a joint inspection with officers of the Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies.
Similarly, on Tuesday, May 13th, at the Apapa Seaport in Lagos, another watch-listed container declared to be carrying new car parts from India was intercepted. A joint examination revealed 169,800 bottles of codeine syrup, valued at over N1.1 billion, concealed within the shipment.
In Kwara State, operatives arrested Abdulwahab Quadir and Abdulraheem Ismail on Friday, 16th May in the Gegele area of Ilorin with 199,200 pills of tramadol. During a raid at Favour Lodge in Ilorin, Ibrahim Oladimeji Abdulateef, an HND 1 student of Kwara State Polytechnic, was caught with 650 grams of “Loud”—a high-potency cannabis variant—already portioned into 149 cups for sale.
In Lagos, NDLEA’s Directorate of Operations and General Investigation (DOGI) intercepted 250 grams of cocaine concealed in a female headscarf at a courier company on Friday, 16th May. The package was bound for Australia.
In Niger State, officers on patrol along Mokwa-Jebba Road on Thursday, 15th May intercepted a Toyota Carina marked AGL 945 BK, transporting 316 blocks of skunk weighing 143kg. A suspect, Idris Kamal, 35, was arrested. Another arrest along Kaduna Road that same day led to the seizure of 14.3kg of Loud from Emmanuel Hassan, 26, with follow-up operations uncovering Bello Aliyu (alias Liti, 39) as the consignment’s true owner.
In Nasarawa, Welman Kengbo, 60, was caught with 594.8kg of skunk on Friday, 16th May in the Karu area. In Lagos, Oyenuga Toheeb was arrested with 67.5kg of skunk on the Lekki/Epe Expressway on Thursday, 15th May.
In Taraba State, NDLEA officers seized 5,350 pills of tramadol and diazepam from Shafiu Ismail, 22, at Sabonlayin, Jalingo LGA. On the same day, Tijjani Mohammed, 35, was nabbed with 198kg of skunk in Malamawa, Garki LGA, Jigawa State.
Meanwhile, during a stop-and-search operation along the Abuja–Kaduna Highway on Friday, 16th May, officers arrested Ismail Isah, 29, with an AK-47 rifle and two loaded magazines hidden in a sack of maize. He will be handed over to the appropriate security agencies for further investigation.
The War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) advocacy efforts continued across the country with sensitization lectures delivered to students and staff of:
- Supreme International School, Fagge, Kano
- Al-Arifeen International Academy, Kaduna
- Nadado Primary School, Bakori, Katsina
- Ila Orangun Grammar School, Osun State
- Government Secondary School, Onne, Rivers State
NDLEA Chairman/CEO, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd.), commended officers across multiple commands including DOGI, Abia, Kaduna, Kwara, PHIPC, Apapa, Lagos, Nasarawa, Jigawa, Taraba, and Niger for their efforts. He praised their balance between supply reduction and demand reduction strategies, which are vital to winning Nigeria’s war against drug abuse and trafficking.
