Newlywed allegedly swallowed cocaine in bid to smuggle drug to Portugal, NDLEA says
Enugu, Nigeria — A 25-year-old newlywed businessman, Lovely Chukwulobelu, has been arrested by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, after allegedly ingesting 72 wraps of cocaine for trafficking to Portugal.
The suspect was intercepted on Thursday, September 25, 2026, at the airport’s departure hall while preparing to board an Ethiopian Airlines flight to Portugal through Addis Ababa, according to the NDLEA.
The agency said Chukwulobelu, who had cocaine in his stomach and a wedding ring on his finger, was placed under excretion observation after his arrest and subsequently egested all 72 wraps of the Class A illicit drug.
The suspect reportedly told investigators that he had been involved in car decoration at the Trade Fair Complex in the Ojo area of Lagos before relocating to Portugal in May 2023.
He returned to Nigeria recently and got married on September 13, 2026.
According to the NDLEA, the suspect said he turned to drug trafficking to offset expenses incurred during his wedding.
The airport arrest formed part of a series of operations carried out by NDLEA commands across the country, during which the agency said it intercepted large quantities of cocaine, opioids, cannabis and other illicit substances.
At the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, NDLEA operatives on September 22 seized 2.55 million pills of Tramaking 225mg, Tramaking 250mg and Royal Tapentadol 250mg, weighing a combined 1,640.55 kilogrammes.
The agency said the drugs were discovered during a joint examination of three monitored consignments imported from India and Bangladesh through Qatar Airways, RwandAir and Ethiopian Airlines.
In Bauchi, NDLEA officers arrested Umar Hamidu, 35, and Abdulkarim Salihu, 45, with 300 compressed blocks of cannabis weighing 262.5kg.
The drugs were allegedly concealed in a false compartment of a truck marked MUB757 YH along the Maiduguri bypass.
In Edo State, NDLEA officers, supported by soldiers, destroyed two cannabis farms at Eko Camp, Ilushi, with an estimated combined yield of 1,360.23kg.
In Lagos, two women, Odumabo Kehinde, 36, and Obiekwe Chioma, 40, were arrested during a raid on Anifowoshe Street, Mushin, where 3.4kg of cannabis was recovered.
At Ebute-Ero motor park, NDLEA officers also arrested Ugwu Johnson, 58, allegedly with 5.920kg of cannabis, 2,400 ampoules of pentazocine injection, 8,400 tablets of nitrazepam and 40,000 pills of tramadol.
In Oyo State, two Togolese nationals, Yinusa Abdulsamad, 35, and Fatai Baba, 33, were arrested along the Iganna-Ilero road with 305.6kg of cannabis allegedly concealed in two pickup vans.
The NDLEA said the suspects were involved in a cross-border trafficking operation moving cannabis sourced from Ghana into Nigeria through the Oyo axis.
At the Seme border in Badagry, Lagos, five suspects were also arrested with 420 cartons of nitrous oxide, commonly known as laughing gas, weighing 1,688.4kg.
The agency identified them as Kingsley John, 40; John Chibuike Okeke, 44; Lamidi Ismaila, 40; Babatunde Samuel, 42; and Afeesu Idowu, 47.
The NDLEA said the suspects were arrested with two vehicles allegedly used to transport the consignment from the border into Lagos.
Beyond the seizures and arrests, the agency said its commands and formations continued with its War Against Drug Abuse sensitisation campaign in schools, worship centres, workplaces and communities across the country.
The sensitisation activities included engagements at Community High School, Saki, Oyo State; Auchi College, Auchi, Edo State; Alkali Modibbo Islamic Centre, Dukku, Gombe State; and Junior Arabic Secondary School, Kahu, Kibiya Local Government Area of Kano State.
The Delta Ports Command also paid a WADA advocacy visit to the Olu of Warri, His Royal Majesty Ogiame Atuwatshe III.
NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd.), commended officers and men involved in the operations and urged them to sustain what he described as the agency’s balanced approach to drug control.
The NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, issued the statement from the agency’s headquarters in Abuja on Sunday, September 27, 2026.
