The NDLEA has busted two major cocaine cartels in Lagos, arresting six suspects, including kingpin Alhaji Hammed Ode.
Officers seized drugs hidden in creams, cups, and crayfish bound for the United Kingdom.
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have dismantled two major drug cartels responsible for multiple cocaine shipments concealed in stainless cups, hair creams, and body lotion containers. The operation, carried out over three weeks across Lagos, led to the arrest of six suspects, including the alleged leader, Alhaji Hammed Taofeek Ode, who claimed to be a businessman and real estate developer.
According to a statement by NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi, the breakthrough began on September 16, 2025, when officers at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) intercepted 174 parcels of cocaine weighing 13.4 kilograms hidden inside containers of cocoa-butter body cream. A cargo agent was taken into custody immediately after the seizure.
Investigations traced the illicit consignment to Alhaji Ode. Following coordinated intelligence gathering, NDLEA officers confirmed that he had earlier lodged a complaint with the Zone 2 Police Command in Lagos. The agency then worked with the police to bring him into custody.
During interrogation, Ode reportedly admitted that he owned the drugs, stating that he purchased them for over ₦150 million. He also claimed to have lived in several European countries including Austria, France, the Netherlands, Germany, and the United Kingdom before returning to Nigeria in 2024.
In a separate development, the NDLEA also stopped five other cocaine shipments bound for the United Kingdom within the same period. The first case occurred on September 26, when operatives discovered 2.1 kilograms of cocaine hidden inside hair-cream containers at the MMIA export shed. The arrest of a cargo agent in that case led investigators to the consignor, identified as furniture maker Smith David Korede.
Korede was arrested on September 30 at his residence on Arowojobe Street, Mafoluku, Oshodi, where another 1.4 kilogram consignment was recovered. That same day, a separate package containing 1 kilogram of cocaine, concealed using the same method and also destined for the UK, was intercepted. The arrested cargo agent again linked the consignment to Korede, connecting him to three separate seizures.
Two additional shipments heading to the UK were intercepted on October 2. NDLEA officers arrested Ogunbiyi Oluseye Taiwo and Popoola Francis Olumuyiwa in connection with the discovery. One consignment contained crayfish and 12 stainless cups stuffed with 1 kilogram of cocaine, while the second held 36 hair-cream containers concealing 1.6 kilograms of the same substance.
In another operation, NDLEA operatives attached to courier firms intercepted 6.3 kilograms of Loud, a potent cannabis strain, hidden in bedsheets and dried hibiscus flowers imported from Thailand.
Additionally, a joint operation by NDLEA and the Nigeria Customs Service along the Danbatta–Daura road in Kano on October 2 led to the arrest of 38-year-old Sa’adu Ali. Officers recovered 290,450 tablets of Tramadol 250 mg and Pregabalin capsules during the stop-and-search.
The NDLEA said these coordinated operations reflect its intensified crackdown on transnational drug syndicates using creative concealment methods to evade detection.
