Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a former councillor in Lagos State and intercepted several consignments of illicit drugs and improvised explosive device (IED) components in multiple operations across the country.
The agency arrested a former two-term councillor at the Ibeju-Lekki Local Government Council, Sheleru Sadiq Olalekan, following intelligence linking him to drug trafficking activities.
The 45-year-old, who currently works as a legislative aide, was apprehended on Monday, March 2, 2026, at his residence in Ilado, Ibeju-Lekki. A search of the premises led to the recovery of 40 kilograms of skunk, a strain of cannabis, concealed in one of the rooms.
According to NDLEA, the suspect admitted ownership of both the seized drugs and the house where they were found. He also confirmed that he previously served two terms as councillor representing the Orimedu community in Ibeju-Lekki.
In a separate operation in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), NDLEA officers on Tuesday, March 3, intercepted a 32-year-old businessman, Emeka Hyginus Okwor, while travelling from Obollo-Afor in Enugu State to Zuba, Abuja.
A search of his luggage uncovered 1,000 pills of tapentadol (250mg) concealed inside baby diapers.
The suspect reportedly confessed that the drugs were meant for delivery to Guduwa village in Gurara Local Government Area of Niger State, where he operates a provision store.
Also on March 3, NDLEA operatives on patrol along the Kabba–Obajana highway in Kogi State intercepted a consignment of Colorado, a synthetic cannabis strain weighing 1.55 kilograms, hidden in a standing fan carton.
The consignment was linked to a 36-year-old Cameroonian, Mey Ali Muhamat, from Maroua in Cameroon, who was travelling in a commercial bus from Lagos to Cameroon through Lokoja, Kano, and Maiduguri.
In Niger State, NDLEA officers on patrol along the Mokwa–Jebba road on Wednesday, March 4, intercepted a commercial bus travelling from Ibadan, Oyo State, with 500 pieces of IED components concealed in a sack.
A follow-up operation led to the arrest of the intended recipient, Osama Abdullahi, 21, in Pelegi, Mashegu Local Government Area.
Further operations in Adamawa State led to the recovery of 122,000 tramadol pills and 700 grams of methamphetamine hidden in the false bottom of a truck transporting 2,000 cartons of local drinks in Yola on March 4.
In Kano State, NDLEA operatives arrested Muhammed Ali, 20, at Gadar Tamburawa on March 3 with 11,283 tramadol pills, while officers in Ogun State raided Ogere and arrested Nazifi Mudansir and Kabiru Musa with 46 kilograms of skunk.
In Delta State, two suspects, Joy Chukwuma, 25, and Eugene Felix, 22, were apprehended on March 7 in Ogwashi-Uku with 18.63 kilograms of skunk, 10.8 litres of codeine-based syrup, and 4,268 pills of tramadol and swinol.
Similarly, in Edo State, NDLEA operatives arrested Eke London, 48, and Austin Isusi, 49, at Egbisi forest in Uhumwonde Local Government Area where 1,910.25 kilograms of skunk cultivated on two farms were destroyed.
Another suspect, Alaba Adeboye, 47, was also arrested in Ikhin town, Owan East LGA with 176.5 kilograms of skunk.
Meanwhile, NDLEA commands across the country intensified their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) advocacy campaign in schools, worship centres, workplaces, and communities. Sensitisation programmes were held in institutions including Government Senior College, Apata in Oyo State; Government Girls Secondary School, Katcha in Niger State; Government Girls Day Secondary School, Tsafe in Zamfara State; and Sango Junior Secondary School, Agege in Lagos State, among others.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended officers and personnel of the Lagos, FCT, Kano, Niger, Kogi, Edo, Ogun, Delta, and Adamawa Commands for their efforts. He urged them to sustain the agency’s balanced strategy of enforcement and drug abuse prevention in the ongoing fight against illicit drugs in Nigeria.