The pastor in charge of the Celestial Church of Christ, Agonvi Sea Beach, Sakpo area of Seme, Badagry in Lagos State, Pastor Afolabi Hodonu, 45, and his wife, Mrs. Success Hodonu, 35, have been arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for being in possession of skunk weighing 11kg.
The pastor and his wife were arrested on Thursday, April 2, 2026 at Gbaji checkpoint in Seme, Badagry.
The couple ran into trouble when NDLEA operatives on duty at the checkpoint conducted a search of their Honda Pilot SUV and discovered blocks of skunk weighing 11kg concealed in hidden parts of their vehicle.
“The arrest of the couple followed the apprehension of a fake security agent Sunday Samuel, 35, at the same checkpoint on Monday, 30th March while conveying 24.5kg skunk from Seme border to Lagos,” the NDLEA said in a statement on Sunday.
In another development , the NDLEA it has successfully dismantled a drug trafficking syndicate in high stakes intelligence led operations that lasted three weeks.
During the operation, the agency stated that cocaine consignments concealed in tins of palm kernel extract heading to the United Kingdom were intercepted and the warehouse where the shipments were packaged raided while all the three layers of the group were unraveled leading to the arrest of the kingpin.
Spokesman of NDLEA, Femi Babafemi who signed the statement said:
“The breakthrough began on Wednesday, 11th March 2026, when NDLEA officers of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Strategic Command, Ikeja, Lagos intercepted 3.10 kilograms of cocaine at the export shed of the airport.
“The illicit substance was meticulously hidden inside tins of palm kernel extract intended for shipment to the UK.
“Two suspects handling the shipment, Idris Olayiwola Amoo and Akinlami Akinsoji Adedoyin were promptly arrested.
“To unravel the sender and the arrowhead of the drug syndicate, a well-coordinated sting operation was carried out on Thursday, 2nd April leading to the arrest of the sender of the consignment, Ezemuwo Joel, who operates under a fake identity as Ajayi.
“His arrest provided the link to the syndicate’s head, 52-year-old King Arinze who was flushed out of a hideout in the Isolo area of Lagos.
“He was thereafter taken to his warehouse at 11, Olaifa Street, Bucknor, Isolo, where NDLEA operatives recovered 886 tins of palm kernel extract prepared for drug concealment; industrial tools including a sealing machine, tin openers; paint sprays; 52 grams of cannabis sativa and a pack of hand gloves. Arinze has since confessed to personally draining the oil from the tins to conceal the cocaine.”
In Borno State, NDLEA said its operatives on Wednesday, 1st April intercepted a female drug supplier to bandit groups operating between the North East and Chad, 28-year-old Aisha Adamu.
According to the agency, the suspect was arrested along Gamboru Ngala road in possession of 4.3 kilograms of Colorado, a potent synthetic strain of cannabis.
In Adamawa State, NDLEA its officers on patrol along Namtari road, Yola South, on Monday, 30th March intercepted a trailer marked RUW 947 XA while transporting 48,000 pills of tramadol.
The statement said the truck driver, Abdulaziz Ismail Korede, was promptly arrested while a follow-up operation led to the arrest of the recipient, Idris Adamu.
“While 60-year-old Idiatu Oladejo was arrested with 15kg skunk in Isale Osun, Osogbo, Osun State on Wednesday, 1st April, NDLEA operatives acting on credible intelligence raided the Itaogbolu forest, Akure, Ondo State where they recovered 351 kilograms of skunk and its seeds.
“No fewer than 28,600 capsules of tramadol were seized from a 66-year-old Aminu Usman Gembu when he was arrested at Aliade, Benue State on Wednesday 1st April.
“In Edo State, a suspect, Roland Owie, 37, was arrested on Monday, 30th March following the raid of his warehouse at Egbanke community, Orhionmwon LGA, where 1,378 kilograms of skunk were recovered.
“A notorious female drug dealer, 40-year-old Ayantola Omodunmomi (a.k.a Iya Elle) was on Wednesday, 1st April arrested at Eleta area of Ibadan, the Oyo state capital.
“Her arrest follows intelligence and surveillance on how she uses her 11-year-old daughter, Anjola, to deliver illicit drugs to her customers.
“At the time of her arrest, 45.6kg skunk was recovered from her warehouse,” NDLEA explained.
The statement said the various commands of the agency also intensified the War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) social advocacy activities during the week under review.
“Some of them include: WADA sensitization lecture delivered to students and staff of Okere Grammar School, Saki, Oyo; Shasha Comprehensive High School, Alimosho, Lagos; Ma’ahad Ahmad Turaki Islamiyya, Sabon Gari, Kano; Ezi-Awka Community Secondary School, Awka, Anambra, and Madrasatul Ihsan, Area One Tsafe, Zamfara state, among others,” the agency said.
While reacting to the seizures and arrest of the past one week, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, retired Brig.-Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa commended officers and men of MMIA, Seme, Borno, Oyo, Ondo, Osun, Edo, Adamawa and Benue Commands for their superlative performances.
Marwa also praised their counterparts in all the commands across the country for pursuing a fair balance between their drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction efforts.
He said : ”These successful operations are a testament to the Agency’s evolving intelligence capabilities and our unwavering commitment to choking the supply lines of drug cartels.
“Whether they hide behind legitimate businesses, religious titles, or complex concealment methods, we will find them.”
(vitalnewsngr.com)
