Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a former councillor in Ibeju-Lekki Local Government Area of Lagos State over alleged involvement in illicit drug trafficking, as the agency recorded multiple arrests and seizures across the country.
The suspect, Sheleru Sadiq Olalekan, 45, who served two terms as councillor representing the Orimedu community, was arrested on Monday, March 2, 2026, at his residence in Ilado, Ibeju-Lekki. NDLEA operatives, acting on credible intelligence, conducted a search of the premises and recovered 40 kilograms of skunk, a strain of cannabis, from one of the rooms.
Olalekan, who currently works as a legislative aide, reportedly admitted ownership of the drugs and the property where they were found.
In a separate operation in the Federal Capital Territory, NDLEA officers on Tuesday, March 3, intercepted a 32-year-old businessman, Emeka Hyginus Okwor, while travelling from Obollo-Afor in Enugu State to Zuba in Abuja. A search of his luggage revealed 1,000 pills of tapentadol (250mg) concealed inside baby diapers.
The suspect confessed ownership of the drugs, stating that he intended to deliver the consignment to Guduwa village in Gurara Local Government Area of Niger State, where he operates a provision store.
On the same day, NDLEA operatives on patrol along the Kabba–Obajana highway in Kogi State intercepted a commercial bus carrying a consignment of Colorado, a synthetic strain of cannabis weighing 1.55kg. The drugs were concealed inside a standing fan carton belonging to a 36-year-old Cameroonian national, Mey Ali Muhamat, from Maroua in Cameroon.
The suspect was travelling from Lagos en route to Cameroon through Lokoja, Kano and Maiduguri.
In another development, NDLEA operatives on patrol along the Mokwa–Jebba road in Niger State on Wednesday, March 4, intercepted a commercial bus from Ibadan in Oyo State carrying 500 components suspected to be parts of improvised explosive devices (IEDs), concealed in a white sack.
A follow-up operation led to the arrest of the intended recipient, Osama Abdullahi, 21, at Pelegi in Mashegu Local Government Area of Niger State.
Meanwhile, NDLEA officers in Yola, Adamawa State recovered 122,000 pills of tramadol and 700 grams of methamphetamine concealed in the false bottom of a truck marked ENU 645XX. The truck was transporting 2,000 cartons of local drinks.
In Kano State, a 20-year-old suspect, Muhammed Ali, was arrested at Gadar Tamburawa on Tuesday, March 3, with 11,283 pills of tramadol.
Similarly, operatives in Ogun State raided Ogere community and arrested two suspects, Nazifi Mudansir and Kabiru Musa, with 46 kilograms of skunk.
In Delta State, two suspects — Joy Chukwuma, 25, and Eugene Felix, 22 — were arrested on Saturday, March 7, at Ogwashi-Uku with 18.63kg of skunk, 10.8 litres of codeine-based syrup and 4,268 pills of tramadol and swinol.
In Edo State, NDLEA operatives arrested a 48-year-old suspect, Eke London, and his accomplice, Austin Isusi, 49, at Egbisi forest in Uhunmwonde Local Government Area, where 1,910.25kg of skunk was destroyed on two cannabis farms. Another suspect, Alaba Adeboye, 47, was arrested at Ikhin town in Owan East Local Government Area with 176.50kg of skunk.
Meanwhile, the agency intensified its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) advocacy campaign with sensitisation programmes in schools, places of worship, workplaces and communities nationwide.
The campaign included enlightenment lectures at Government Senior College, Apata in Ibadan; Government Girls Secondary School, Katcha in Niger State; Government Girls Day Secondary School, Tsafe in Zamfara State; Sango Junior Secondary School, Agege in Lagos; Government Day Secondary School, Illela in Sokoto State; Archbishop Akinola International Secondary School, Afikpo in Ebonyi State; and Nnamdi Azikiwe Secondary School, Abagana in Anambra State.
Commending officers and personnel across several state commands for the arrests and seizures, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), urged them to sustain the agency’s balanced approach to drug control through enforcement and preventive education.