The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has recorded a series of high-profile drug seizures and arrests across Nigeria, including the arrest of 22 Indian crew members linked to a cocaine shipment intercepted at Apapa Port, Lagos.
According to The Sun, the arrests were made on Friday, January 2, 2026, after NDLEA operatives discovered 31.5 kilograms of cocaine concealed in hatch three of the merchant vessel MV Aruna Hulya. The ship, which sailed from the Marshall Islands, was berthed at Apapa Port when the illicit cargo was uncovered.
Among those arrested was the vessel’s master, Sharma Shashi Bhushan, along with 21 crew members. The detained crew include Bharati Manoj Kumar, Bhalerao Nilesh Mukund, Nadar Anthony Macson David, Kolusu Srinivasa Rao, Sagar Gaurav, Francis Anto Beemas Nester, Jagdeep Singh, Jai Parkash, Prabhukhan Singh, Nevage Sandesh Suresh, Pandey Prashant, Nittu Anand, Akash Babu, Dasari Raju, Reddy Nandika Sanjeeba, Rana Nivesh, Melethil Insaf Rahman, Barla Chantanya Krishna, Ghosh Arijit, Mondal Raihan, and Gangwar Shiv Om.
The suspects have been transferred to the NDLEA State Criminal Investigation Department in Lagos for further interrogation.
The agency also confirmed earlier seizures on December 24 and 29, 2025, at a courier company in Lagos, where consignments of ketamine, ecstasy, and tramadol pills were discovered hidden inside coffee mix sachets and parcels destined for Zambia and the United Kingdom.
In November, NDLEA announced the arrest of 20 Filipino sailors accused of trafficking at least 20 kilograms of cocaine from Brazil to Apapa Port. The agency is also collaborating with United States and British anti-drug authorities to investigate an international cartel linked to the seizure of 1,000 kilograms of cocaine found in a container at a Lagos port earlier in the month.
Beyond the ports, NDLEA operations extended nationwide. In Ibadan, Oyo State, operatives arrested a 65-year-old woman, Fatima Ilori—popularly known as “Mama Kerosine”—alongside 35-year-old Olusanya Abosede, after 238.4 kilograms of skunk, a potent strain of cannabis, were traced to them.
In Borno State, the agency said it disrupted drug supply routes allegedly linked to insurgents. Isa Mohammed, 26, was arrested on January 2, 2026, along the Maiduguri–Gamboru Ngala Road with 9,150 ampoules of tramadol injections, while Musa Samaila, 30, was caught the same day at Biu Market with 34,000 tramadol capsules, according to The Nigeria Guardian.
Other major seizures recorded during the period include:
400 kilograms of skunk recovered with a van in Lagos on New Year’s Day
140.8 kilograms of compressed skunk seized from Bilya Ibrahim, 39, in Hadejia, Jigawa State, on December 30, 2025
238.5 kilograms of skunk recovered from a residence in Asadam, Ilorin, Kwara State, on December 30, 2025
32,000 tramadol and diazepam pills seized from Abubakar Rabiu, 32, at Bode Saadu, Moro Local Government Area, on December 31, 2025
NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), commended officers involved in the operations, describing the seizures as a reflection of the agency’s intensified crackdown on drug trafficking. He also highlighted the agency’s ongoing War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) campaign, which continues to engage schools, workplaces, religious centres, and local communities nationwide.
The NDLEA reaffirmed its commitment to dismantling both domestic and international drug networks operating within and through Nigeria.
