Nigerian Authorities Seize ₦39bn Worth of Cocaine, Arrest Popular Social Media Influencer
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has dismantled an international cocaine trafficking network that allegedly used Nigeria as a transit route for moving narcotics from South America to the United Kingdom, Europe and parts of Asia.
The breakthrough followed the seizure of 184.50kg of cocaine valued at about ₦39 billion, concealed in a consignment processed through a courier logistics company in Lagos for export. NDLEA Chairman, Mohamed Buba Marwa, disclosed the development on Tuesday, August 18, describing it as one of the agency’s major investigations and the largest cocaine seizure ever recorded through a courier company in Nigeria.
Investigations into the shipment led to the arrest of two key suspects, including Lawal Mujab Kehinde, a staff member of the logistics firm who allegedly maintained a longstanding relationship with the cartel’s Nigerian coordinator and helped package and route cocaine consignments to foreign destinations.
Another suspect, Afolabi Kazeem Michael, popularly known as KC Luxury, was identified by the agency as the alleged Nigerian leader of the network. He was arrested at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos on August 13, while allegedly attempting to leave the country on a flight to Paris.
According to the NDLEA, officers recovered €7,750, £2,800 and ₦100,000, along with jewellery, from Michael. Exotic vehicles were also recovered during a subsequent search of his residence in Banana Island.
The agency said the cartel operated through false identities and financial intermediaries who allegedly moved billions of naira for the network while maintaining links with associates in the United Kingdom. Some members of the syndicate were also arrested in the UK in what the NDLEA described as a near-simultaneous international operation.
The NDLEA said the breakthrough highlights the growing attempts by trafficking networks to exploit courier and logistics channels as alternative routes for moving drugs. The agency, however, assured that it would continue to target the networks, financiers and facilitators behind transnational drug trafficking.
