A convicted cocaine trafficker who allegedly returned to drug dealing under a new identity and herbal tea business has been arrested in Lagos.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), in its latest nationwide operational update, said the arrest followed an intelligence-led trail from the interception of 1.2kg of cocaine concealed in phone chargers and destined for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The 34-year-old suspect, identified as Dunu Bethel Ebubechukwu, was arrested during a sting operation at Article Market, opposite Trade Fair Market, in the Ojo area of Lagos on Friday, September 4, 2026.
His arrest followed the interception of 1.2kg of cocaine concealed in phone chargers at a courier company in Lagos on July 31.
According to the agency, operatives of its Directorate of Operations and General Investigation (DOGI) tracked the alleged mastermind through intelligence-led operations after the cocaine shipment was intercepted.
During questioning, Ebubechukwu admitted masterminding previous drug shipments and said he discarded his telephone SIM card after learning that the latest consignment had been intercepted.
NDLEA investigations also revealed that the suspect had previously been arrested at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, in 2011 after ingesting 900 grammes of cocaine and 130 grammes of heroin while attempting to travel to Austria.
He was prosecuted, convicted and sentenced to five years in prison. The agency said he later changed his name from Dunu Chukwuyenre Enoch to Dunu Bethel Ebubechukwu before returning to the illicit trade.
A search of his residence at Yemishola Street, Ejigbo, Lagos, led to the recovery of phone chargers similar to those allegedly used to conceal the intercepted cocaine. Their internal components had been removed to create compartments for drugs.
The Lagos operation formed part of a wider NDLEA crackdown that also uncovered a 20,000-litre fuel tanker fitted with a concealed compartment for cannabis and led to the seizure of more than two million opioid pills and large quantities of cannabis, methamphetamine and other controlled substances.
At the Lagos airport, operatives seized 966,200 tablets of Tramadol 225mg valued at more than N1.1 billion. The drugs were concealed among thrift trousers in a 21-carton consignment from Pakistan.
Another 57.80kg of Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis with an estimated street value of more than N173 million, was found hidden inside cartons of disposable hand gloves in a shipment from Singapore.
The shipment had remained unclaimed for weeks before NDLEA officers, Customs officials and other security agencies conducted a joint examination on Thursday, September 3.
In Ondo State, officers pursued a 20,000-litre tanker marked MKA 960 XC along the Akoko/Lokoja Expressway after its driver allegedly refused to stop. The driver later abandoned the vehicle at a church premises in Ugbe Akoko and escaped into the bush.
A search uncovered a false compartment containing 165 bags of cannabis weighing 2,145kg alongside the legitimate fuel cargo reportedly destined for Jos, Plateau State.
At the Tincan Port in Lagos, NDLEA operatives intercepted another 598.08kg, comprising 890 packets, of cannabis-laced cookies and gummies in a 40-foot container on Wednesday, September 2.
The consignment was linked to three suspects — Yashim Dauji, Larry Ifeanyi and Joseph Moji — who were arrested barely a month earlier following the seizure of 842.54kg of cannabis-infused cookies at the port.
In Adamawa, officers recovered 864,000 opioid pills, particularly tramadol, from a residence linked to a fleeing suspect, Patrick KC Frank. The suspect allegedly rammed his Honda Civic into an NDLEA patrol vehicle before escaping.
Another suspect, Calistus Ebubechukwu, 35, described by the agency as a major methamphetamine supplier from Lagos to the Mubi and Michika areas, was arrested in Michika with 2kg of methamphetamine.
The agency also reported the interception of Attahiru Hussaini at Namtari checkpoint in Mubi on August 31 with tramadol and other opioids concealed in a soap-laden Ford Galaxy bus.
In Lagos, officers recovered 2,386.9kg of cannabis, 350 grammes of cocaine, more than 100kg of assorted tramadol grades, 9.7 litres of codeine syrup and 4kg of rohypnol at Gbaji. Two suspects, Damilare Francis and Emeh Emmanuel, were also arrested at Agbara with 720kg of cannabis.
In Kogi State, Saidu Mustapha, 35; Zaharadeen Salisu, 29; and AbdulSalam Abdullahi, 25, were arrested with 636kg of cannabis allegedly concealed in chicken manure aboard a bus travelling from Owo, Ondo State, to Jos, Plateau State.
In Taraba, NDLEA officers arrested 58-year-old Kelechi Unachukwu along Zaki-Biam Road in Wukari Local Government Area with more than 109kg of assorted controlled medicines, including tramadol, diazepam, pentazocine, phenobarbital, exol-5, nitrazepam, bromazepam and pregabalin.
Kaduna operatives intercepted a truck loaded with cement bags along the Zaria-Kano Expressway and recovered 1,179kg of skunk.
In Bauchi, Hamza Dahiru, 25, was arrested in a follow-up operation after 322.5kg of cannabis was seized at Deba town in Gombe State on September 1.
Two suspects, Chuks Alex, 50, and Asafa Adekunle, 35, were arrested in Ekiti after officers uncovered and destroyed a four-hectare cannabis farm in Efon-Alaaye forest. The operation also yielded 117kg of already-harvested skunk.
In Enugu, a 20-year-old suspect, Obinna David, was arrested at Ugbema Junction on September 5 with 40,590 capsules of tramadol.
Beyond the seizures and arrests, NDLEA commands and formations continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation campaigns in schools, worship centres, workplaces and communities across the country.
NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd), commended the officers involved in the operations and urged them to maintain the agency’s current approach to drug control.
He said traffickers who believe they can reinvent themselves through new identities or legitimate business fronts “will continue to be tracked down.”