NDLEA Arrests Herbal Tea Businessman Over Cocaine Shipment to Saudi Arabia

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, have arrested a 34-year-old herbal tea businessman, Dunu Bethel Ebubechukwu, over an alleged cocaine shipment destined for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

The suspect was arrested during a sting operation at Article Market, opposite Trade Fair Market, in the Ojo area of Lagos on Friday, September 4, 2026.

His arrest followed the interception of 1.2kg of cocaine concealed inside phone chargers at a courier company in Lagos on July 31.

The consignment was reportedly headed for Riyadh, prompting investigators from the agency’s Directorate of Operations and General Investigation, DOGI, to launch an intelligence-led operation to identify those behind the shipment.

NDLEA said Ebubechukwu emerged as the alleged mastermind after weeks of painstaking investigation.

During interrogation, the suspect reportedly admitted involvement in previous illicit drug shipments. He also told investigators that he discarded his telephone SIM card after learning that the agency had intercepted the latest consignment.

Further investigation showed that Ebubechukwu had previously faced prosecution for drug trafficking.

The agency arrested him in 2011 at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, after he ingested 900 grammes of cocaine and 130 grammes of heroin while attempting to travel to Austria.

He was prosecuted, convicted and sentenced to five years in prison.

After his release, the suspect allegedly changed his name from Dunu Chukwuyenre Enoch to Dunu Bethel Ebubechukwu before returning to the illicit drug trade.

A search of his residence at Yemishola Street, Ejigbo, Lagos, on Friday also yielded phone chargers similar to those used to conceal the intercepted cocaine.

Investigators found that the internal components of the chargers had been removed to create compartments for hiding drugs.

The arrest formed part of a wider NDLEA crackdown that produced major seizures and arrests across nine states.

At the Lagos airport, NDLEA operatives recovered 966,200 tablets of Tramadol 225mg worth more than N1.1 billion.

The drugs were concealed among thrift trousers in a 21-carton consignment that arrived from Pakistan.

The operatives also seized 57.8kg of Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis, with an estimated street value of more than N173 million.

The substance was hidden inside cartons of disposable hand gloves in a shipment from Singapore that had remained unclaimed for weeks.

NDLEA officers, alongside Customs and other security agencies, conducted a joint examination of the consignment on Thursday, September 3.

In Ondo State, operatives intercepted a 20,000-litre fuel tanker after its driver refused to stop along the Akoko-Lokoja Expressway on Friday.

The driver later abandoned the tanker at a church premises in Ugbe Akoko and escaped into the bush.

A search of the vehicle uncovered a concealed compartment containing 165 bags of cannabis weighing 2,145kg.

The tanker also carried legitimate fuel cargo reportedly destined for Jos, Plateau State.

At the Tin Can Island Port in Lagos, the agency intercepted another 598.08kg of cannabis-infused cookies and gummies packed in 890 packets inside a 40-foot container.

NDLEA linked the shipment to three suspects already in custody over an earlier seizure of 842.54kg of cannabis-laced cookies.

In Adamawa State, officers recovered 864,000 opioid pills, mainly Tramadol, from a residence linked to a fleeing suspect, Patrick KC Frank.

Frank reportedly rammed his Honda Civic into an NDLEA patrol vehicle before escaping.

Another operation in Michika led to the arrest of 35-year-old Calistus Ebubechukwu, described by the agency as a major methamphetamine supplier operating between Lagos, Mubi and Michika.

Operatives recovered 2kg of methamphetamine from him.

The agency also intercepted Attahiru Hussaini at Namtari checkpoint in Mubi on August 31.

He was allegedly conveying Tramadol and other opioids concealed in a soap-laden Ford Galaxy bus.

Meanwhile, NDLEA operatives in Lagos recovered 2,386.9kg of cannabis, 350 grammes of cocaine, more than 100kg of assorted Tramadol, 9.7 litres of codeine syrup and 4kg of Rohypnol at Gbaji.

Two suspects, Damilare Francis and Emeh Emmanuel, were also arrested at Agbara with 720kg of cannabis.

In Kogi State, officers arrested Saidu Mustapha, 35, Zaharadeen Salisu, 29, and AbdulSalam Abdullahi, 25, with 636kg of cannabis.

The suspects allegedly concealed the cannabis in chicken manure aboard a bus travelling from Owo, Ondo State, to Jos, Plateau State.

In Taraba State, 58-year-old Kelechi Unachukwu was arrested along Zaki-Biam Road in Wukari.

NDLEA operatives found more than 109kg of assorted controlled substances in his Toyota Corolla.

The drugs included Tramadol, diazepam, pentazocine, phenobarbital, exol-5, nitrazepam, bromazepam and pregabalin.

The consignment was reportedly being transported from Onitsha, Anambra State, to Yola, Adamawa State.

In Kaduna State, operatives intercepted a truck carrying bags of cement along the Zaria-Kano Expressway and recovered 1,179kg of skunk.

NDLEA officers in Bauchi also arrested 25-year-old Hamza Dahiru in a follow-up operation linked to the seizure of 322.5kg of cannabis at Deba in Gombe State on September 1.

In Ekiti State, the agency uncovered and destroyed a four-hectare cannabis farm in the Efon-Alaaye forest.

Two suspects, Chuks Alex, 50, and Asafa Adekunle, 35, were arrested while officers recovered 117kg of already harvested skunk.

The agency also arrested 20-year-old Obinna David at Ugbema Junction, Enugu State, with 40,590 Tramadol capsules on Saturday, September 5.

Beyond the arrests and seizures, NDLEA commands and formations continued their War Against Drug Abuse, WADA, sensitisation campaigns across the country.

The campaign reached schools, worship centres, workplaces and communities during the week.

The activities included an enlightenment lecture for nursing mothers and nurses at Ibereko Primary Health Centre in Abeokuta North, Ogun State.

Officials also sensitised youths in Umouji-Okwo community at Olokoro, Umuahia South Local Government Area of Abia State.

Similar engagements took place among NLNG staff and concessionaires at the Saipem-Daewoo NLNG terminal in Bonny, Rivers State.

NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), commended officers involved in the operations for their professionalism and intelligence-driven approach.

Marwa urged them to sustain the agency’s balanced approach to drug control across the country.

He also warned traffickers who attempt to evade detection by changing their identities or operating behind legitimate businesses.

According to him, the agency will continue to track such individuals regardless of the fronts they use to conceal their activities.