NDLEA Arrests Italy-Based Businessman With 98 Wraps Of Cocaine At Enugu Airport

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), have arrested a 30-year-old Italy-based businessman, Joseph Cyril, at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport (AIIA), Enugu, after he ingested 98 wraps of cocaine allegedly destined for Europe.

Cyril was arrested on Sunday, August 2, 2026, during the outward clearance of passengers on Ethiopian Airlines flight ET930, en route to Italy through Addis Ababa and France.

Following his arrest, the suspect was placed under excretion observation, during which he expelled 98 wraps of cocaine weighing 1.510 kilogrammes.

According to the NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi, preliminary investigations revealed that Cyril arrived in Nigeria from Italy on July 13 and allegedly ingested the consignment at a hotel in Awka, Anambra State, before travelling to Enugu to board his flight.

In his statement, the suspect said he had been doing business in Italy for several years but agreed to traffic the cocaine for €3,500 to raise money to relocate to Germany, where his family is based.

In another operation, NDLEA operatives foiled attempts by drug trafficking syndicates to export 1.2kg of cocaine concealed inside 25 pieces of phone chargers to Saudi Arabia through a courier company in Lagos.

The agency also intercepted 500 grammes of cocaine hidden in the false bottom of a backpack at another logistics company in Lagos on Monday, August 3, in a consignment allegedly destined for Italy.

Similarly, 2.3kg of Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis, imported from the United States, was intercepted at another shipping company in Lagos on Tuesday, August 4.

In Ondo State, NDLEA operatives on patrol along the Akure-Ilesha Expressway intercepted a truck heading north on Tuesday, August 4, and recovered 1,633kg of skunk concealed in bags of rice shafts.

Two suspects, Buba Jamilu, 40, and Sanusi Ibrahim, 30, who were allegedly transporting the consignment, were arrested.

Also in Ondo, 147kg of skunk was recovered from Ita Ogbolu Forest during a raid conducted on Monday, August 3..

In Oyo State, NDLEA operatives acting on credible intelligence raided a drug warehouse at Elebure village in Orire Local Government Area on Monday, August 3.

The operation led to the recovery of 731.03kg of cannabis and the arrest of a 57-year-old suspect, Felicia Thompson, while her alleged partner, Thompson Vincent Nwaka, is currently at large.