The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has arrested a 56-year-old suspected drug trafficker after intercepting 25.05 kilogrammes of methamphetamine concealed in packs of assorted breakfast cereals imported from South Africa through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.
The suspect, identified as Chinedu Onwude, allegedly spent more than 24 years in South Africa using a stolen identity before his arrest.
The development was announced in a statement released on Sunday by the NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi.
According to the agency, Onwude, who travelled under the name Omokan Isaac Babatope, was apprehended on Wednesday, November 11, 2026, shortly after arriving from South Africa at Terminal II of the Lagos airport.
A search of his two travelling bags reportedly led to the discovery of 25 parcels of a white crystalline substance weighing 25.05kg, which tested positive for methamphetamine.
The illicit substance had been hidden inside packs of different breakfast cereals and cereal-based food products to evade security checks.
The statement partly read, “The meth suspect, Omokan Isaac Babatope, whose real name is Chinedu Onwude, was arrested on Wednesday, 11th November 2026, at the arrival hall of Terminal II of the Lagos airport upon his return from South Africa.
“A thorough search of his two travelling boxes led to the recovery of twenty-five parcels of a white crystalline substance, which tested positive for methamphetamine with a total weight of 25.05kg.
“The parcels had been carefully concealed inside packs of assorted breakfast cereals and cereal-based food products in a bid to beat security screening.”
The agency disclosed that the suspect possessed Nigerian and South African passports and had lived in South Africa for over two decades.
During preliminary questioning, Onwude reportedly admitted that he adopted the identity of Omokan Isaac Babatope after using forged documents to enter South Africa and continued using the name afterwards.
He also allegedly told investigators that a South Africa-based man, identified as Obiora Okoye, hired him to transport the drugs into Nigeria for R20,000.
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The statement added, “The 56-year-old suspect holds both Nigerian and South African passports and has been resident in South Africa for over 24 years.
“During a preliminary interview, he confessed that he adopted the name Omokan Isaac Babatope after using forged documents to gain entry into South Africa and had continued to use that identity ever since.
“He further stated that he was contracted by a South Africa-based man, Obiora Okoye, to deliver the illicit consignment in Nigeria for a fee of twenty thousand South African rand (R20,000).”
In a separate operation on the same day, NDLEA operatives arrested a 28-year-old American citizen, Greene Da’monte Khiree, over the attempted importation of 33.95kg of Loud, a potent cannabis strain, from Thailand.
The suspect arrived in Lagos aboard an Emirates flight from Thailand through Dubai. According to the agency, operatives monitoring his movement noticed that he abandoned two checked-in bags and attempted to leave the airport with only his hand luggage.
He was subsequently arrested at the airport car park.
A search of the abandoned luggage, which carried his name tags, revealed 32 parcels of Loud weighing 33.95kg. A tracking device was also recovered from the bags.
The suspect, who is from Savannah, Georgia, United States, reportedly claimed that he had been living in Thailand since October 2025, where he played professional basketball. He said he travelled to Nigeria for a holiday and to establish contacts for his basketball career.
However, a forensic examination of his mobile phone allegedly revealed information indicating his knowledge of and involvement in the drug trafficking operation.
The agency also reported the arrest of a 33-year-old man, Taiwo Aderoju, during an intelligence-driven operation at Ebute Metta on Tuesday, November 10. Operatives recovered 119.71kg of cannabis sativa from him.
In Kaduna State, NDLEA officers raided a facility in Sabon Garin Kangin on Monday, November 9, uncovering a workshop allegedly used for the local production of firearms.
A 45-year-old suspect, Sagiru Musa, was arrested during the operation. Recovered items included 17 locally manufactured Dane guns, two pistols, 25 Dane gun pipes and other materials used in making firearms.
Another joint operation conducted in the Ajah area of Lagos on Saturday, November 14, resulted in the recovery of several illicit substances from an abandoned silver Toyota Sienna.
The agency said the vehicle’s occupant fled after noticing the operatives, leaving behind 78.8kg of cannabis, 2.5 litres of skuchies, 6.8 litres of codeine syrup, 23 grammes of Rohypnol, 478 grammes of tramadol, 10.6kg of nitrous oxide and 714 grammes of pregabalin.
Meanwhile, NDLEA officers on patrol along the Abuja-Kaduna Expressway intercepted a 31-year-old woman, Tabara Dauda, at Jere on Friday, November 13.
The woman was allegedly transporting 196 rounds of live AK-47 ammunition and ₦675,000 in cash.
The agency also disclosed that its commands and formations across the country continued their War Against Drug Abuse sensitisation campaign in schools, religious centres, workplaces and communities during the week.
Some of the institutions visited included Poko Community Primary School in Poka, Epe, Lagos State; Community Grammar School, Eyinni, Ibadan, Oyo State; and Iganmode Grammar School, Ota, Ogun State.
The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brigadier General Mohamed Marwa (retd.), commended the operatives for their alertness and professionalism during the operations.
He said the discovery of methamphetamine hidden in breakfast cereal packs demonstrated the agency’s determination to uncover drug trafficking methods, regardless of how carefully the substances were concealed.
Marwa noted that “interception of methamphetamine concealed in breakfast cereals shows that no concealment method, however ingenious, can beat the resolve of the agency’s operatives.”