Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency have arrested a former councillor in Ibeju-Lekki Local Government Area of Lagos State, Centre of Excellence, over alleged involvement in illicit drug trade.
Details of the arrest were contained in a statement issued on Sunday by the agency’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi.
The suspect, Sheleru Sadiq Olalekan, 45, who previously served two terms as a councillor representing Orimedu community and now works as a legislative aide, was apprehended on Monday, March 2, 2026, at his residence in Ilado, Ibeju-Lekki. A search of the premises led to the recovery of 40 kilograms of skunk concealed in one of the rooms.
In his statement, Olalekan admitted ownership of the drugs and the property where they were discovered. He also told investigators that he had served two terms as a councillor in Ibeju-Lekki Local Government Council.
In another operation in the Federal Capital Territory, officers on Tuesday, March 3, intercepted a businessman, Emeka Hyginus Okwor, 32, travelling in a vehicle from Obollo-Afor in Enugu State to Zuba in Abuja. A search of his luggage uncovered 1,000 pills of tapentadol 250mg hidden inside baby diapers. The suspect admitted ownership and said the consignment was meant for delivery to Guduwa village in Gurara Local Government Area of Niger State, where he operates a provision store.
On the same day, operatives patrolling the Kabba–Obajana highway in Kogi State intercepted a parcel of Colorado, a synthetic cannabis strain, weighing 1.550 kilograms. The drug was hidden inside a standing fan carton belonging to Mey Ali Muhamat, a 36-year-old Cameroonian from Maroua. He was travelling in a commercial bus from Lagos to Cameroon through Lokoja, Kano and Maiduguri.
In Niger State, officers on patrol along the Mokwa–Jebba road on Wednesday, March 4, stopped a commercial bus from Ibadan, Oyo State. Inside the vehicle, they found 500 pieces of improvised explosive device components concealed in a white sack meant for delivery at Pelegi. A follow-up operation led to the arrest of the intended recipient, Osama Abdullahi, 21, in Pelegi, Mashegu Local Government Area.
The agency also reported the interception of 122,000 tramadol pills and 700 grams of methamphetamine concealed in the false bottom of a truck marked ENU 645XX. The truck, carrying 2,000 cartons of local drinks, was intercepted in Yola, Adamawa State, on Wednesday, March 4.
In Kano State, Muhammed Ali, 20, was arrested on Tuesday, March 3, at Gadar Tamburawa with 11,283 tramadol pills. In Ogun State, operatives raided Ogere, leading to the arrest of Nazifi Mudansir and Kabiru Musa with 46 kilograms of skunk.
Two other suspects, Joy Chukwuma, 25, and Eugene Felix, 22, were arrested on Saturday, March 7, at Ogwashi-Uku in Delta State. Officers recovered 18.63 kilograms of skunk, 10.8 litres of codeine-based syrup and 4,268 pills of tramadol and swinol from them.
In Edo State, officers arrested Eke London, 48, and his accomplice, Austin Isusi, 49, at Egbisi forest in Uhumwonde Local Government Area, where 1,910.25 kilograms of skunk were destroyed on two farms. Another suspect, Alaba Adeboye, 47, was apprehended in Ikhin town, Owan East Local Government Area, with 176.50 kilograms of skunk.
The agency also carried out anti-drug awareness programmes in schools and communities across the country during the past week. These included sensitisation lectures at Government Senior College, Apata in Ibadan, Oyo State; Government Girls Secondary School, Katcha in Niger State; Government Girls Day Secondary School, Tsafe in Zamfara State; and Sango Junior Secondary School, Agege in Lagos State, Centre of Excellence.
Other schools visited were 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.
NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.) commended officers across Lagos, the FCT, Kano, Niger, Kogi, Edo, Ogun, Delta and Adamawa states for the arrests and seizures.
He urged them to sustain the agency’s approach to drug control efforts across the country.
