In a major breakthrough against drug trafficking, operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have raided an 80-room hotel in Victoria Island, Lagos, seizing illicit drugs valued at over ₦1.04 billion.
The operation, which took place between Friday, April 25th and Saturday, April 26th, 2025, led to the discovery of 589 bags of “Canadian Loud,” a potent strain of cannabis, weighing a total of 417.3 kilograms.
Femi Babafemi, the Director of Media & Advocacy on Sunday said the contraband was hidden across the five-storey building known as “The Hook Hotel,” also operating as Caesar Hotel and Caesar Lounge at 16 Waziri Ibrahim Street, off Elsie Femi Pearse Street.
Three suspects — Eze Ayitu, Ofuokwu Samuel, and Emmanuel Ameh — were arrested during the raid, while two others, identified as Noble Philip and Kenneth, remain on the run.
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Items suspected to be proceeds of the illicit drug trade, including luxury vehicles, dozens of televisions, and refrigerators, were also recovered.
In a related development, NDLEA officers in Jigawa and Kano states intercepted a major opioid shipment destined for Niger Republic and Yobe State.
Acting on intelligence, operatives stopped a Toyota Sienna vehicle along the Kano-Ringim road in Gumel town, recovering 200,000 tramadol pills and 217,500 pregabalin capsules.
However, two suspects, Abba Ibrahim and Shuaibu Umar, were arrested.
A follow-up operation led to the arrest of the supplier, Jamilu Muhammad, and the seizure of an additional 1.58 million tramadol pills in Kano — bringing the total haul to over two million pills.
Meanwhile, at a courier company in Lagos, NDLEA’s Directorate of Operations and General Investigation intercepted 46 wraps of cocaine, cleverly concealed in body cream and destined for Saudi Arabia.
Another shipment containing 1.8kg of pentazocine injections and 60 grams of bromazepam tablets bound for Canada was also seized.
The Agency also made key arrests at the Seme border, where three Ghanaian women — Haziza Zubairu, 42; Samirat Mustapha, 43; and Jamila Salifu, 26 — were caught trying to smuggle nearly 5kg of high-grade cannabis (“Ghana Loud”) into Nigeria.
In similar operations, a 60-year-old woman, Safiya Shamsu, was apprehended in Kano with 5.6kg of cannabis.
In the same state, 35-year-old Muntari Labaran was arrested for possessing 100 litres of codeine syrup.
In Edo State, NDLEA officers destroyed 3,814.9kg of cannabis on two farms in Ugbodu community, arresting three suspects during the raid.
Alongside these enforcement efforts, NDLEA continued its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitization programs, reaching students and community groups across Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto, and Anambra states.
Commending the officers for their relentless efforts, NDLEA Chairman/CEO, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), praised the balance the Agency has maintained between reducing both the supply and demand for drugs across the country.
