Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a 40-year-old wanted drug baron, Yussuf Abayomi Azeez, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, while attempting to board a flight to Saudi Arabia for Umrah.
The NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, confirmed the arrest on Sunday, revealing that the operation followed months of intensive intelligence gathering and surveillance.
According to Babafemi, Azeez, who was previously charged with drug offences in the United Kingdom before jumping bail and fleeing to Nigeria, had established a large-scale clandestine laboratory in the Lekki area of Lagos for producing Colorado, a potent synthetic strain of cannabis.
“At about 6:30 a.m. on Thursday, November 6, 2025, Yussuf was intercepted at the Lagos airport while attempting to flee. Operatives later stormed his Lekki residence at 17 Vincent Eku Street, Ogombo, which had been under surveillance,” Babafemi stated.
He said Azeez was arrested alongside Abideen Kekere-Ekun, 43, and that NDLEA operatives dismantled laboratory equipment, precursor chemicals, and already processed drugs weighing 148.3 kilograms.
In separate operations across Nigeria, NDLEA officers intercepted multiple shipments of illicit substances, including 105.5 kg of Molly and 500 grams of methamphetamine at the Sifax bonded terminal in Okota, Lagos.
Other major seizures include:
- 87,000 tramadol pills and 72 kg of cannabis recovered in Niger State;
- 34,520 tramadol capsules seized in Taraba State;
- 7.6 kg of “Loud” cannabis and 175,000 opioid pills confiscated in Kogi and Abuja;
- Arrest of a 73-year-old man in Edo State and a 70-year-old woman in Bayelsa for drug-related offences.
NDLEA Chairman, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (rtd.), commended officers for their “swift and coordinated actions” and reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to dismantling all networks of drug trafficking and production across the country.
“The Lekki bust, coming just a week after another lab was dismantled in Ajao Estate, Lagos, is proof that we are closing in on those who profit from addiction and death,” Marwa said.
He assured that NDLEA, working with both local and international partners, will “continue to hunt down” all drug barons and bring them to justice.
