NDLEA Intercepts Drugs Hidden in Coffee Sachets, Detains 22 Indians Over Cocaine Shipment; Arrests Notorious Female Kingpin in Ibadan
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have intercepted consignments of illicit drugs concealed in sachets of coffee mix and book parcels destined for Zambia and the United Kingdom, while also taking into custody 22 Indian crew members of a merchant vessel linked to a major cocaine seizure at the Apapa seaport in Lagos.
The coffee sachet seizures, made at a courier company in Lagos on December 24 and 29, 2025, included quantities of Ketamine, Ecstasy and Tramadol pills. The interceptions coincided with the arrest of crew members of MV Aruna Hulya, a merchant vessel from the Marshall Islands, where 31.5 kilograms of cocaine were discovered in hatch three during an NDLEA operation at the GDNL terminal, Apapa port, on Friday, January 2, 2026.
Those detained in connection with the cocaine seizure include the vessel’s master, Sharma Shashi Bhushan, alongside 21 other Indian crew members.
In a related development, NDLEA operatives in Oyo State have arrested a wanted female drug kingpin in Ibadan. The suspect, 65-year-old Fatima Ilori, popularly known as “Mama Kerosine,” was apprehended on Monday, December 29, 2025, following an intelligence-led operation. She is alleged to be a major distributor of illicit drugs in the state. A total of 238.4 kilograms of skunk, a strain of cannabis, was recovered in connection with her activities. Another suspect, Olusanya Abosede, 35, was also arrested during the operation at the Onireke/Elekuro area of Ibadan.
In Borno State, NDLEA further disrupted drug supply routes to insurgents with the arrest of two suspected suppliers. One of them, Isa Mohammed, 26, was arrested along the Maiduguri–Gamboru Ngala road on Friday, January 2, 2026, with 9,150 ampoules of Tramadol injection. The second suspect, Musa Samaila, 30, was arrested the same day at Biu market with 34,000 capsules of Tramadol.
Meanwhile, not less than 400 kilograms of skunk was recovered, alongside a van, at the Mobolaji Johnson area of Lagos on New Year’s Day, Thursday, January 1, 2026. In Jigawa State, NDLEA operatives arrested a suspect, Bilya Ibrahim, 39, at a motor park in Hadejia town on Tuesday, December 30, 2025. He was found attempting to transport 260 compressed blocks of skunk weighing 140.8 kilograms, allegedly sourced from Taraba State and destined for Nguru in Yobe State.
In Kwara State, NDLEA officers on Tuesday, December 30, recovered 238.5 kilograms of skunk from the residence of a suspect in the Asadam area of Ilorin. Additionally, 32,000 pills of Tramadol and Diazepam were seized from another suspect, Abubakar Rabiu, 32, at Bode Saadu in Moro Local Government Area on Wednesday, December 31, 2025.
Beyond enforcement operations, NDLEA commands across the country sustained their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation campaigns during the period. Outreach activities were conducted in schools, worship centres and communities, including sessions at Madrasatu Fadimatul Zahra in Kankia LGA of Katsina State, with members of the Topo Youth Progressive Organisation in Badagry, Lagos, and residents of Madalla community in Niger State.
Commending the officers and men of the DOGI, Apapa, Oyo, Borno, Lagos, Kwara and Jigawa commands for the arrests and seizures, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd), urged them and their colleagues nationwide to intensify ongoing drug control efforts.
— Femi Babafemi
Director, Media & Advocacy
NDLEA Headquarters, Abuja
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