Video: NDLEA busts international drug cartel smuggling cocaine, others across five countries
Abdullateef Fowewe
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has successfully dismantled an international organised criminal group (IOCG) operating between Nigeria, the UK, Brazil, Australia, and the UAE.
As learnt in a statement obtained on Sunday by the NDLEA’s Director of Media & Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, the cartel’s leaders were apprehended in Lagos following a two-week intelligence-driven operation that intercepted a large shipment of cocaine concealed in textile materials bound for Sydney, Australia.
He revealed that the operation began on August 26, 2025, when NDLEA officers intercepted 76 cartons of textile materials at Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos.
A thorough search revealed “16 big blocks of cocaine weighing 17.9 kilograms hidden in lace materials parked with local charms to provide spiritual cover against law enforcement detection.”
Olashupo Michael Oladimeji, a freight agent and cartel member, was the first arrest related to this seizure.
The shipment had an estimated street value of over 5.3 million Australian Dollars, roughly N5.3 billion.
Subsequent investigations led to the arrest of other key leaders.
Muaezee Ademola Ogunbiyi, identified as the cartel’s Nigerian coordinator, was arrested at a hotel in Ikeja GRA on September 3rd.
A search of his residence uncovered “21 parcels of Canadian Loud, a strain of cannabis with a total weight of 10.90kg,” alongside a double-barreled pump-action gun and cartridges.
A raid on a house at 13 Reverend Ogunbiyi Street, Ikeja GRA—used for packaging illicit drugs for export—resulted in the arrest of Shola Adegoke, another top cartel leader.
Law enforcement seized “a black Range Rover SUV marked RBC 459 EJ” containing 17 parcels of Loud weighing 9.60 kilograms. A black Toyota Venza was also seized earlier from Ogunbiyi.
Investigations revealed that Adebisi Ademola Omoyele (known as Mr. Bee), currently in Dubai, UAE, leads the cartel’s overseas operations. Shola Adegoke, previously jailed in the UK for Methamphetamine dealing and deported in 2024, and Ogunbiyi, a former UK prisoner for murder, were key players coordinating Nigerian activities.
Further seizures included the arrest of Gabriel Michael, a Milan-based Nigerian, on September 5th at Lagos airport.
He was caught with “24,480 pills of tramadol 100mg, 200mg and 225mg,” aimed to be sold for 19,520 euros.
In another major seizure, NDLEA and Nigerian Customs officers discovered “160,200 bottles of codeine-based syrup” hidden in a 40ft container disguised as ceramic sanitary wares at the West Africa Container Terminal in Port Harcourt on September 4th. The illicit cargo’s estimated value exceeds N1.1 billion.
