The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has recorded major victories in its latest nationwide crackdown, dismantling at least six drug syndicates and arresting nine key suspects linked to large-scale trafficking operations.

In one of the most significant breakthroughs, operatives intercepted a shipment of illicit drugs cleverly concealed inside pressure machine cylinders imported from South Africa. The consignment, which arrived at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos on November 13, was later traced to a logistics company in Onitsha, Anambra State.

Following a sting operation, NDLEA officers arrested 30-year-old electrical appliances dealer Ebulue Lotanwa Uzochukwu and 51-year-old South Africa returnee Christopher Michael Ndibuisi. The seized items included 5.40kg of methamphetamine, 10.70kg of loud cannabis, 16g of cocaine, and other banned substances.

At the Lagos airport, officers also uncovered 2.3kg of cocaine hidden inside a vehicle brake servo bound for Gabon. A freight agent, Ameh Solomon, and auto parts dealer, Nwafor Tochukwu Boniface, were later arrested during a follow-up operation at the Trade Fair Complex in Ojo.

In Kogi State, NDLEA operatives intercepted a trailer in Kabba carrying 4.7 tonnes of skunk. Three suspects were arrested, and a subsequent investigation led officers to Jos, where alleged kingpin Marcus Danladi Dan Mangu was taken into custody.

A separate operation in Ugep, Cross River State, resulted in the arrest of a husband and wife — 55-year-old Onun Okoi Okpotum and 52-year-old Itam Okoi Okpotum — after 362 jumbo bags of skunk weighing 4,706kg were recovered from a warehouse.

More arrests were recorded in Edo, Kebbi, Niger, Lagos, Enugu, and Abuja, including two young women who reportedly produced and sold drug-laced brownies online.

Reacting to the series of busts, NDLEA Chairman Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd) praised the operatives for their diligence and urged them to remain vigilant, especially as the festive season approaches — a period he says drug cartels often exploit to intensify trafficking efforts.

The NDLEA reaffirmed its commitment to disrupting criminal networks and preventing illicit substances from reaching communities across Nigeria.