NDLEA Seizes 1.63 Million Tramadol Pills, Arrests Suspects

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has seized 1.63 million pills of tramadol and arrested multiple suspects, including an 80-year-old man and a businesswoman, in a series of coordinated nationwide operations targeting transnational drug trafficking networks. The agency announced the results of these intelligence-led actions on Sunday, July 19, 2026.

The largest seizures involved two long trailers intercepted on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway while en route to Kano. According to NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy Femi Babafemi, the first trailer was stopped on July 2, yielding 853,000 tramadol 250mg pills concealed in a fabricated compartment beneath its cargo floor. The 22-year-old driver, Jabir Kabiru, was arrested. A second trailer was intercepted on the same route on July 4, with 777,000 pills recovered from a similar hidden compartment. Its driver, 22-year-old Muhammed Nuhu, was also taken into custody.

Investigations revealed these two shipments, along with a third truck intercepted on June 21 carrying 558,900 tramadol pills, are all linked to the same transnational syndicate operating along the Togo-Benin Republic-Nigeria corridor. The combined seizures from this...