The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 25-year-old newlywed businessman, Lovely Chukwulobelu, at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, after he allegedly ingested 72 wraps of cocaine in an attempt to traffic the drug to Portugal.
NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, disclosed the arrest in a statement on Sunday, saying Chukwulobelu was intercepted at the airport’s departure hall on Friday, September 25, 2026, while attempting to board an Ethiopian Airlines flight to Portugal through Addis Ababa.
According to the agency, officers detected suspected cocaine in the passenger’s system and subsequently placed him under excretion observation, during which he allegedly expelled 72 wraps of cocaine.
The NDLEA said Chukwulobelu, who was still wearing his wedding ring at the time of his arrest, told investigators that he had previously worked in the car-decoration business at the Trade Fair Complex in Ojo, Lagos, before relocating to Portugal in May 2023.
He reportedly returned to Nigeria recently and got married on September 13, 2026.
According to the agency, the suspect claimed he ventured into the alleged drug-trafficking operation in an attempt to raise money to offset expenses incurred during his wedding.
The Enugu airport arrest formed part of a series of drug-interdiction operations announced by the NDLEA across different parts of the country.
At the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, operatives on Tuesday, September 22, intercepted 2,550,000 pills of Tramaking 225mg, Tramaking 250mg and Royal Tapentadol 250mg, with a combined weight of 1,640.55 kilograms.
The agency said the drugs were uncovered during the joint examination of three monitored consignments imported from India and Bangladesh through Qatar Airways, RwandAir and Ethiopian Airlines.
In Bauchi State, operatives arrested Umar Hamidu, 35, and Abdulkarim Salihu, 45, along the Maiduguri bypass after allegedly recovering 300 compressed blocks of skunk weighing 262.5kg.
The cannabis was reportedly concealed in a false compartment of a truck.
NDLEA officers, supported by soldiers, also destroyed two cannabis farms at Eko Camp, Ilushi, Edo State, with the agency estimating the combined yield at 1,360.23kg of cannabis.
In Lagos, operatives arrested Odumabo Kehinde, 36, and Obiekwe Chioma, 40, during a raid in the Mushin area, where 3.4kg of skunk was allegedly recovered.
At Ebute-Ero Motor Park, NDLEA operatives also intercepted Ugwu Johnson, 58, who was allegedly found with 5.920kg of skunk, 2,400 ampoules of pentazocine injection, 8,400 tablets of nitrazepam and 40,000 tramadol pills.
The agency further announced the arrest of two Togolese nationals, Yinusa Abdulsamad, 35, and Fatai Baba, 33, along the Iganna-Ilero Road in Oyo State after operatives allegedly recovered 305.6kg of skunk concealed in two pickup vehicles.
NDLEA alleged that the suspects were members of a cross-border trafficking network moving cannabis sourced from Ghana into Nigeria through the Oyo axis.
At the Seme border in Badagry, Lagos State, five suspects were arrested with 420 cartons of nitrous oxide, commonly known as laughing gas, weighing 1,688.4kg.
The suspects were identified as Kingsley John, John Chibuike Okeke, Lamidi Ismaila, Babatunde Samuel and Afeesu Idowu. Two vehicles allegedly used in transporting the consignment were also recovered.
The agency said its commands and formations across the country simultaneously continued sensitisation activities under its War Against Drug Abuse campaign in schools, religious centres, workplaces and communities.
Reacting to the operations, NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd.), commended officers of the Enugu airport, Lagos airport, Lagos, Oyo, Edo, Seme and Bauchi commands and urged personnel nationwide to sustain the agency’s combination of enforcement and drug-abuse prevention efforts.
.. “I Wanted To Offset My Wedding Expenses” — NDLEA Arrests Newlywed Who Allegedly Excreted 72 Cocaine Wraps At Enugu Airport … NewsNGR.
