The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) reported that Oluwadamilola Aderinoye, a former beauty queen and Miss Commonwealth Nigeria Culture 2015/2016, surrendered to its Lagos command after being in hiding for eight months.
Aderinoye was declared wanted after escaping a raid on her apartment in Lekki, Lagos, where NDLEA operatives found 606 grams of Canadian Loud, a synthetic cannabis strain, drug packaging materials, and a black SUV. Aderinoye claimed she had been hiding in Akure, Ondo State.
In a related operation, the NDLEA intercepted a large quantity of drugs at various ports, including 31,124,600 tramadol pills and 1,284,600 bottles of codeine-based syrup valued at over N17.9 billion. The seizures were made at the Port Harcourt Port Complex in Onne, Rivers State, and Tin Can Port in Lagos.
The agency, in coordination with the Nigerian Customs Service and other security agencies, carried out a thorough examination of watch-listed containers following intelligence reports about the shipments originating from India.
Additional arrests included Eze Emekan Don at Port Harcourt International Airport for attempting to smuggle 1,490 tramadol pills disguised as cosmetics, Mustapha Ibrahim in Lagos for possessing 1,122 kilograms of cannabis, and Friday Gabriel in Niger State for transporting tramadol, codeine, and exol-5 tablets.
In Bauchi State, two suspects were caught with 246.4 kilograms of cannabis hidden in a false compartment of their bus.
These actions underscore the NDLEA’s ongoing efforts to combat drug trafficking and illegal substance distribution in Nigeria.