The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has recorded significant interdictions in several states across the country, showcasing the agency’s ongoing efforts to combat drug trafficking. 

Operations in Adamawa and Kano states have led to the arrest of individuals and the seizure of substantial quantities of illicit substances.

In Adamawa State, a 41-year-old ex-convict and returnee from Malaysia, Ndubuisi Udatu (also known as Richard), was apprehended at an NDLEA checkpoint in Namtari along the Ngurore-Yola road on Monday, April 7th, 2025.

Udatu was found in a commercial transport bus with two large music speakers which concealed four parcels of methamphetamine weighing 2.7 kilograms. 

The drugs were reportedly destined for distribution in Yola and Mubi, as well as across the border into neighbouring Cameroon. A monetary exhibit of N22,300 was also recovered.

According to a statement released by the NDLEA Headquarters in Abuja, Udatu confessed that he had returned to Nigeria to continue his drug trafficking activities after serving a jail term in Malaysia for similar offences.

Further north, in Kano State, NDLEA operatives made a significant arrest on Friday, April 11th, 2025. Aliyu Ibrahim, aged 27, was nabbed in the Bachirawa area of Kano with 20 ATM cards and a staggering 25,600 pills of tramadol in 225mg and 250mg dosages.

The Kano operation was further bolstered by a follow-up arrest in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja. Following the seizure of a consignment of 8,960 tramadol pills during a routine check along the Gwagwalada motorway on Monday, April 7th, NDLEA officers tracked and arrested 48-year-old Gambo Lawan at the Wazobia motor park in Gwagwalada.

Meanwhile, the NDLEA is also actively engaging in drug demand reduction efforts across the northern states. In Adamawa State, the Nurul Faruq Islamic Academy in Gombi received a War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation lecture.

The Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended the officers and men of the Adamawa and Kano State Commands for their successful operations. 

He urged them and their counterparts nationwide to maintain the momentum in their offensive against drug cartels while simultaneously intensifying drug demand reduction initiatives.

While these significant arrests and seizures highlight the NDLEA’s work in the northern region, the agency also reported a major interdiction at the Nigeria/Cameroon border in Mfum, Cross River State (southern Nigeria). 

In a joint operation with customs personnel, a transborder drug trafficker, 35-year-old Odoh Peter Ikechukwu, was arrested with a massive consignment of 8,740 ampoules of assorted opioids weighing 395kg. 

These included fentanyl, morphine sulphate, phenobarbital sulphate, pethidine, and midazolam injections. Additionally, in Niger State (north-central), 124 kilograms of skunk were recovered from a vehicle along the Mokwa-Jebba road.

These operations across the country underscore the NDLEA’s commitment to tackling both drug supply and demand, with notable successes recorded in the northern states of Adamawa and Kano.