NDLEA Busts Delta Kingpin, Seizes ₦7.8bn Opioids

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has captured a notorious drug trafficker, 36-year-old Sunday Ibigide, in Asaba, Delta State, after evading arrest for three years.

According to the agency, Ibigide was apprehended on Sunday, 10th August 2025, while attempting to transport 250 blocks of cannabis sativa, commonly known as skunk, weighing 138 kilograms, in a distribution vehicle. He was arrested alongside his aide, 27-year-old Clement Osuya.

NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, confirmed the arrest in a statement issued from Abuja. He explained that Ibigide had been on the run since March 2022 when he was linked to the seizure of over 24 kilograms of skunk and 10 grams of molly but disappeared before he could be prosecuted.

The operation in Delta was part of a wider series of nationwide raids between 11th and 16th August, during which NDLEA operatives intercepted large quantities of narcotics and arrested multiple suspects.

• In Enugu, operatives seized 20,700 pills of tramadol and cocodamol from 53-year-old Emmanuel Ayogu at Nsukka Road, while two men, Nsubechukwu Achidde (24) and Osiaja Simple Frank (41), were caught with 27.6kg of skunk at New Market.
• In Lagos, a woman, Muyibat Mumuni (52), and her son, Faruk (25), were arrested in Mushin for storing and distributing 298 blocks of Ghana Loud weighing 149kg, while another suspect, Emmanuel Samuel, was picked up in Ajah with 8.5kg of Canadian Loud.
• In Gombe, Sani Mohammed (32) was caught with 128,000 tramadol capsules, and in Kogi State, officers intercepted 337,800 capsules from a commercial bus driven by Sulaiman Oyedokun (47).
• In Taraba, NDLEA teams, supported by local security outfits, destroyed 11,250kg of cannabis on 4.5 hectares of farmland in Tanmiya Forest and seized 29,840 tramadol capsules from a suspect in Wukari.
• In Kaduna, four suspects, including Caroline David (51) and Abdulhadi Umar (30), were arrested after officers recovered 111.1kg of skunk and thousands of opioid pills at various checkpoints.

A major breakthrough was also recorded at the Port Harcourt Ports Complex in Rivers State, where NDLEA and Customs operatives jointly uncovered 875,000 bottles of codeine syrup worth over ₦6.1 billion and 3.5 million pills of trodol benzhexol valued at ₦1.7 billion in five containers flagged under intelligence watch.

Additionally, six suspects were apprehended during raids on cannabis farms in Enugu Ezike, Enugu State, where officers destroyed 37,500kg of cannabis cultivated on 15 hectares of land and recovered 74.5kg for evidence.

Babafemi said the arrests and seizures demonstrate NDLEA’s sustained crackdown on drug trafficking networks across the country.

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has reported fresh breakthroughs in its nationwide operations, with large drug seizures and multiple arrests across several states.

In Edo State, operatives recovered 24 bags of skunk weighing 432kg from a bush along Warake–Auchi Road in Etsako West LGA on Wednesday, 13th August. A day later, another 130kg of skunk was seized from a warehouse in Sobe, Owan West LGA.

In Kano, NDLEA officers arrested Tahiru Madu Manga (25) with 16kg of cannabis along the Zaria–Kano Road, while Ibrahim Audu (47) was caught the same day at Gadar Tamburawa carrying 76kg of the drug.

Similarly, at the Gbaji checkpoint on the Badagry–Lagos Highway, operatives intercepted 4,320 ampoules of ketamine injection on Monday, 11th August, leading to the arrest of Akeem Adegun.

NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), praised the officers of the Edo, Kano, Delta, Taraba, Lagos, Gombe, Kogi, and Seme Commands for their efforts. He urged personnel nationwide to sustain the agency’s “balanced approach” to combating drug abuse and trafficking.