Nigeria: NDLEA Uncovers ‘Green Tea’ Drug Plot, Nabs Female Dealers with 108kg Illicit Substances

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have intercepted a major drug trafficking plot involving a consignment of cannabis cleverly disguised as green tea at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos.

The operation led to the recovery of 66 parcels of Loud, a potent strain of cannabis, weighing 62.20kg.

The seizure, which occurred on Thursday, 5th June 2025, was the result of credible intelligence received by the NDLEA prior to the cargo’s arrival at the airport on 11th May.

According to officials, the consignment was placed on a watch list and monitored for over three weeks before a joint examination was carried out with other security stakeholders.

“The Loud consignment weighing 62.20kg was concealed inside wraps of green tea that came from Thailand via UAE on an Emirates Airlines flight,” the NDLEA stated.

In a separate operation in Lagos, NDLEA agents on Monday, 2nd June, intercepted another significant haul of 1,665kg of skunk along the Lekki-Ajah expressway.

Two suspects—Gidado Abdulrasaq Ayinde and Obanla Oluwafemi—were arrested in connection with the seizure.

Meanwhile, in Kaduna State, operatives on patrol along the Abuja-Kaduna expressway on Tuesday, 3rd June, arrested 29-year-old Goodluck Nnaemeka in possession of 612 bottles of codeine-based syrup and 2,970 pills of flunitrazepam. That same day, NDLEA apprehended 52-year-old Kabiru Musa (a.k.a KB), a wanted drug dealer, in Kurmin Mashi. He had earlier been linked to a cache of 25.7kg of skunk.

In Edo State, along Auchi Road, a routine stop of an Audi station wagon with license plate AAA 975 XU led to the discovery of 9kg of Loud hidden inside the spare tyre compartment. The vehicle was driven by 45-year-old Atari Israel.

Additionally, two young women—Favour Joy and Joy Igwe—were arrested on Tuesday, 3rd June in the Ikpoba Hill area of Benin City. Recovered from them were:

106.57kg of skunk

1kg of Loud

800 grams of Colorado

302 grams of methamphetamine

Beyond enforcement, NDLEA’s War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) initiative continued across various Nigerian states. Sensitization lectures and outreach programs were conducted in educational institutions including Sir Usman Nagogo College of Arabic and Islamic Studies (Katsina), Fountain of Knowledge International Academy (Ebonyi), Prof. Eyo Ita Municipal Model Primary School (Cross River), Millennium High School (Lagos), and Community Secondary School (Anambra).

The NDLEA Zone 13 Command also paid a courtesy advocacy visit to Dr. Edmund Dakoru, the Amayanabo of Nembe Kingdom in Bayelsa State.

In his weekly briefing, NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended the operatives involved: “I commend the officers and men of MMIA, Lagos, Kaduna, and Edo Commands of the Agency for the arrests and seizures of the past week. I also praise their counterparts across the country for maintaining a fair balance between their drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction efforts.”

The agency continues to intensify efforts to disrupt drug trafficking networks across the country, as Nigeria’s drug war enters a new phase of intelligence-led operations and sustained community engagement.