NDLEA Arrests Ex-Convict Smuggling Cocaine to UK
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested an ex-convict, Nwobodo Chidiebere, Basil, for attempting to export cocaine to the United Kingdom just months after completing a previous sentence for drug trafficking.
Nwobodo was apprehended alongside three cargo agents—Jubrin Firdausi Hassana, Kuku Daniel Oluwasegun, and Igwe Chioma Jane—in connection with the seizure of 75 parcels of cocaine weighing 1.50kg.
According to a statement released on Sunday by the agency’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, the illicit drugs were ingeniously concealed in factory-sealed sachets of cold-water starch.
The consignment was intercepted at the export shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos. The NDLEA revealed that Nwobodo is a notorious drug trafficker who had been convicted earlier in the year.
Records showed that he was arrested in May 2023 over the seizure of 30.10kg of methamphetamine, for which he was arraigned, convicted, and sentenced to five years imprisonment with an option of a N7 million fine.
Babafemi noted that Nwobodo paid the fine and almost immediately returned to his criminal trade.
Following the arrest of the cargo agents on Saturday, December 20, 2025, investigators traced the shipment to Nwobodo, who was subsequently arrested the following day at a relaxation centre in Ikeja where he was on a date with his girlfriend.
In related enforcement actions across the country, the agency intercepted a 65-year-old driver, Sada’u Mohammed, along the Gombe-Biu highway. He was found transporting 300 ampoules of pentazocine injection and 27,900 pills of tramadol intended for Borno State.
Similarly, in Lagos, operatives apprehended businessman Ignatius Egbochie, also known as Brown, in Apapa regarding a prior seizure of 26kg of ‘Loud’ cannabis at the Tincan seaport.
Further tactical operations in Edo and Ekiti states led to the interception of vehicles carrying over 800kg of cannabis and the destruction of warehouses containing 638kg of illicit substances.
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