Nigeria: NDLEA arrests suspected drug kingpin at Lagos Airport

Nigeria’s anti-narcotics agency has arrested a 40-year-old man described as a “notorious drug lord” at Lagos’ Murtala Mohammed International Airport as he prepared to board a flight to Saudi Arabia for Umrah.

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) said Yussuf Abayomi Azeez had been under surveillance for months before his arrest. Spokesman Femi Babafemi said Azeez had previously been arrested and charged in the UK but fled to Nigeria after jumping bail.

According to the agency, Azeez established a large illegal drug laboratory in the Lekki area of Lagos, where he allegedly produced “Colorado” , a potent synthetic strain of cannabis — and other substances. He was arrested alongside 43-year-old Abideen Kekere-Ekun.

The NDLEA said officers dismantled the lab and seized more than 148kg of drugs, along with equipment and chemicals used in production.

In separate operations, large quantities of drugs were also recovered across several states. In Lagos, officers seized 105.5kg of Molly and 500g of methamphetamine. In Niger State, they intercepted 87,000 tramadol pills and 72kg of skunk.

In Edo State, a 73-year-old man was arrested at a cannabis farm where officers destroyed nearly 1.5 tonnes of the drug. Two other suspects, aged 70 and 43, were detained in Bayelsa and Kogi states with cannabis and “Loud,” a potent cannabis strain.

NDLEA chairman Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd) praised the officers’ work, saying the operations were part of efforts to dismantle drug trafficking networks nationwide.

He said the arrests should serve as “a strong warning to drug barons” that the agency, working with international partners, would continue to pursue and prosecute offenders.