Drug traffickers have in recent times upped the ante and devised numerous tactics to conceal illicit substances from the prying eyes of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) operatives.

The agency has uncovered numerous methods used by suspects through its officials’ vigilance and diverse scanners at the nation’s airports.

The NDLEA discovered through its intelligence-led operations that traffickers have devised more technical and professional ways of concealing drugs to evade detection using items that appear harmless or normal at first glance during routine, manual checks.

During the operations, the agency has found that the substances are concealed through several means, including basic household items such as food products, vehicles, trucks, mobile accessories, electronic appliances, cosmetics, clothing and courier services, among others.

The Peoples Gazette highlighted 20 ways traffickers have concealed illegal substances uncovered through modern devices, intelligence-led operations and alertness of the NDLEA operatives.

Fufu Wraps

On August 21, NDLEA operatives in Akwa Ibom State, through credible intelligence, intercepted a wooden boat, arresting three suspects conveying 42.622kg of narcotics to fishing settlements in Cameroon; one of the suspects, Kingsley Effiong John, 27, was found with 20 grams of cocaine concealed inside a large wrap of edible cassava (fufu), alongside 435 grams of skunk.

Plantain peels

A 67-year-old Nigerian-British grandma, Mary Yetunde Barek, was arrested in July at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, as 13 kilograms of cocaine were discovered in plantain peels which appeared to be normal food items.

Loaves of bread

In a massive raid by the vigilant officers recently, a stop-and-search operation along the Zaria-Kano-Hadeija road led to the seizure of 1,700 tablets of diazepam hidden inside loaves of bread from a 28-year-old woman, Habibu Sabitu.

Bags of food shafts

Traffickers have also used bags of food shafts to conceal large amounts of illegal drug substances. Operatives intercepted a truck heading to the North with 1,633 kilograms of skunk concealed in bags of rice shafts while on patrol, with two suspects arrested for transporting the consignment.

Cookies and gummies

Snacks such as cookies and gummies have also been used as a major tactic to hide drugs, as most of these products are infused with several illicit substances. 

Operatives of the NDLEA, Customs and other security agencies during a joint examination of a 40ft container seized a total of 73 cartons containing 442 packets of cookies and gummies infused with cannabis at the Tincan port complex Lagos, weighing 309.4kg were discovered during a joint examination of a 40ft container at the Tincan port complex Lagos.

In another case, the agency seized a consignment of 890 packets weighing 598.08kg of cannabis-laced cookies intercepted in a 40-foot container at the port and linked to previous seizures. 

False bottom of food Flasks and baby food tins

Traffickers also use methods such as baby food tins and false bottoms of food flasks to conceal drugs. Operatives of the agency intercepted 12 large parcels of cocaine weighing 2.80 kilograms, concealed in the false bottoms of food flasks, heading to the United Kingdom.

In 2024, operatives of the NDLEA recovered 36 parcels of highly potent cannabis, with a total gross weight of 18.50 kilograms, concealed inside factory-sealed Nestlé Cerelac baby food tins at the SAHCOL export shed at the Lagos airport.



Cosmetics containers

In March, operatives intercepted a 37-year-old man, Friday Ehinuaka, who attempted to fly out 2,698 pills of Tramdol (225mg) at the Lagos airport concealed inside skin-lightening body lotion containers. The suspect said he was a resident of Milan and was to be paid upon his arrival in Italy.



Clothings

In another bust in March, Christian Agbonhese, a 38-year-old Milan resident, was arrested at the same airport in Lagos after a thorough search of his luggage led to the discovery of 23,150 pills of tramadol (225mg), 4,000 tablets of tapentadol (250mg), and 1,320 pills of tramadol (100mg) hidden inside two large winter jackets.

The NDLEA Operatives also recovered 200 tablets of tramadol (225mg) worth over N1.1 billion hidden among thrift trousers in a 21- carton consignment from Pakistan in Lagos through a major drug seizure operation across Adamawa, Ondo, Kaduna, Bauchi, Ekiti, Kogi, Taraba and Enugu states.



Vehicle fuel tanks

In July, NDLEA operatives, following credible information, disclosed that a suspect, Daniel Harrison Ugoweke, 30, was arrested with 43,980 tablets of tramadol hidden inside two vehicle fuel tanks along the Zaki-Biam road in the Wukari Local Government Area of the state, while travelling from Onitsha, Anambra State.



Fuel tanker compartments

On September 4, a coordinated nationwide operation by the NDLEA intercepted a 20,000-litre fuel tanker in Ondo State fitted with 165 bags of cannabis, weighing a total of 2,145kg along the Akoko/ Lokoja expressway destined for Jos, Plateau State.

The agency said the driver abandoned the tanker at a church premises in Ugbe Akoko, which prompted officers to conduct a search of the vehicle.



Music speakers

A sting operation led to the interception of a music speaker concealed with three packs of Colorado at a motor park in Maza Maza, Lagos, which was en route to Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, and ultimately Liberia. A tour agent and Ifeanyi Obed Augustin,41, and the consignment’s owner, Obasi Ugochukwu, 46, were apprehended in a nearby eatery.



Child as cover 

A South African woman, Will Jessica Ann, was arrested in July and sentenced to 40 years in jail after she was nabbed by operatives at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport for concealing 14 large blocks of heroin weighing 5.75 kilograms in her luggage, using her three-year-old son to pass airport security and evade thorough screening.

She initially denied that the luggage did not belong to her but later admitted to carrying the drugs. She explained that she was a member of a transnational drug trafficking organisation along with her spouse, Jan Coenraad De Jager, based in Cambodia, where they operate the drug network with a Cambodian and South African axis.



Water purifiers

In May, the NDLEA operatives seized consignments of water purifier machines at a courier company, shipped to Lagos from the Netherlands, stuffed with mainly ketamine weighing 3 kilograms and 199 grams of MDMA (ecstasy).



Gas compressors & gas cylinders

Operatives of the Directorate of Operation and General Investigation (DOGI) intercepted gas compressors in July at a logistics company in Lagos, concealed with 2.5kg of skunk, a strain of cannabis.

Apart from traffickers using gas compressors, they also use gas cylinders to hide drugs. Recently in Delta State, operatives arrested a suspect, Onya Jude, 36, in possession of five gas cylinders used to conceal 2.8 kilograms of Loud, a strong strain of cannabis, at Ogwashi-Uku, Aniocha South area of the state. 



Alcohol cartons

NDLEA operatives seized 5.80 kilograms of cocaine during a sting operation in Ekwusigo LGA of Anambra State, fitted inside nine cartons of Orijin Bitters in an attempt to present the herb drinks as normal items heading to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

An investigation led to the arrest of Nwabueze Felix Onyeka, a PhD student at the University of Putra, Malaysia, with four other suspects, including a cargo agent, driver, trader, and a man who supplied the cartons to conceal the illicit substances.



Soaps

In a massive operation, the agency intercepted over N6.2 billion worth of opioid pills and consignments of captagon, widely known as ‘Jihadi drug,’ following the arrest of a 49-year-old cross-border kingpin, Akinbile Kazeem Aikins, at the Lagos airport, who arrived from Accra, Ghana.

About 47,200 pills of the illicit amphetamine drug worth over N1.5 billion were discovered in a carton in his possession, concealed in local bathing soap, popularly known as “Ghana Soap.” The suspect told operatives that he was to deliver the parcels to the North.



False bottom of Luggages

In June, Iwebema Ogechi Peace, 38, was arrested by the agency at the departure hall of Terminal 2 of the Lagos airport after a large consignment of cocaine was discovered through credible intelligence in the false bottom of her luggage while travelling to Beijing, China.

The drugs had a combined weight of 7.5 kilograms. The 38-year-old claimed to be a businesswoman and said she travels to buy items for sale in Nigeria.



 Mobile accessories

The agency has intercepted several attempts to traffic drugs abroad concealed in mobile phone chargers. In July, operatives seized 1.2 kilograms of cocaine concealed in 25 pieces of phone chargers, with their internal components being removed, as the accessories were heading to Saudi Arabia from a courier company in Lagos.



Disposable hand glove cartons

Early this month, following a huge bust at the Lagos airport, 57.80 kilograms of Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis, was seized worth over N174 million and hidden inside cartons of disposable hand gloves from a consignment from Singapore.



Local Mortar

Operatives have also nabbed traffickers concealing cocaine in mortars.  

On July 30, 250 gams of cocaine was fitted into the base of a local mortar packed in a carton, which was set to be exported to China. The agency also discovered 500grams of the same Class A drug hidden in the false bottom of a backpack being shipped to Italy.
However, the NDLEA chairman, Brig-Gen. Buba Marwa (retd), has vowed to sustain the agency’s crackdown on drug cartels.

With general elections fast approaching, presidential candidates have begun making a barrage of promises – some of which may never materialise – in an attempt to woo voters in a nation that is drowning in debt, inflation and insecurity crises, among others.

Nigeria’s political heavyweights are again locking horns, switching alliances and trading jabs in their quest to win the presidency.

But before the campaign season gets into full swing, Peoples Gazette revisits some of the defining moments from the 2023 presidential race, from Bola Tinubu’s “Emi lokan” and “Bulaba, Blu” to Peter Obi’s Pandora Papers revelations and Atiku Abubakar’s leaked SPV tape.

1: Emilokan

Emilokan (Yoruba for “it is my turn”) became a defining catchphrase for Mr Tinubu’s campaign in June 2022 after he flayed the Muhammadu Buhari regime for attempting to sabotage his presidential bid in the primary elections of the All Progressives Congress. He insisted it was his turn to clinch the party’s ticket, saying “emi lokan.”

In a meeting with APC delegates in Abeokuta in June 2022, Mr Tinubu said he offered succour and support to Mr Buhari, who cried on television after he lost the presidential election for the third time in a row.

Mr Tinubu referenced an unwritten power arrangement between the North and South, implying he also expected Mr Buhari to reciprocate the same support for his 2023 presidential ambition.

“I didn’t beg him for contracts, I never begged him for garri, I never begged him for fura and I never borrowed money from him,” Mr Tinubu said of Mr Buhari’s administration. “But I insisted it is Yoruba’s turn and when it comes to Yoruba it is my turn (Emi lokan).”

Emilokan caught on among Nigerians with sharply divided opinions. Supporters hailed Mr Tinubu as an elder statesman who had paid his dues in supporting other candidates and deserved to become the nation’s number one citizen.

Others castigated Mr Tinubu, saying that the presidency was not his birthright.

Afrobeats artistes like Qdot, Eedris Abdulkareem and Joseph Olusola hopped on the trend to release separate songs titled Emilokan.

2: A town hall different from “Bala Blu, Blu, Bulaba”

Although Mr Tinubu put up a ferocious fight for the 2023 presidential election, his campaign was marred by gaffes and word salads that caused the majority of Nigerians to question his mental acuity to hold office.

On one such occasion in Imo State during an APC town hall meeting in November 2022, Mr Tinubu struggled to speak coherently.

“A town hall, different from balablu-blu-bulaba,” said the Nigerian leader, who was at the time a candidate.

Mr Tinubu came under intense ridicule as Nigerians created memes and skits from the misspeak. Mr Tinubu’s supporters, including the aviation minister, Festus Keyamo, dismissed concerns about Mr Tinubu’s health, downplaying it as an attempt at humour.

3: Rented bishops

As concerns over the Muslim-Muslim APC presidential ticket heightened, Mr Tinubu‘s campaign released a video of men in bishop robes endorsing Mr Tinubu and his running mate, Kashim Shettima, in 2022.

In a desperate attempt to portray that Christian leaders okayed the ticket, Mr Tinubu’s team hired some men and dressed them in bishop cassocks to attend the presentation of Mr Shettima as the APC vice-presidential candidate.

But what was supposed to be a secret arrangement became public knowledge after Mr Tinubu’s team allegedly failed to fulfil their end of the bargain. The fake bishops said they weren’t paid in full for their appearance.

“They came to meet us at the car park behind Eagle Square and they promised to give me N100,000. They bought food for us and took us to another place where they gave us clothes to dress like Christian leaders and reverend fathers,” Joseph Odaudu told The Gazetteshortly after the event in Abuja. “But after we finished they only gave me N40,000 and another person said they got only N30,000. I don’t know why they changed our agreement because they said they had N100,000 for us.”

4: Atiku Abubakar’s deletion of tweet condemning the murder of Deborah Samuel over alleged blasphemy

In 2022, Atiku Abubakar, then a presidential aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party, deleted a tweet criticising the killing of Deborah Samuel, a Christian student who was lynched over alleged blasphemy.

Ms Samuel was murdered at Shehu Shagari College of Education in May 2022 in a jungle justice-style attack for allegedly asking her colleagues to stop bombarding the class WhatsApp group with Islamic messages.

Her comment triggered the wrath of Islamic fanatics who cornered Ms Samuel, pelted her with stones and poured fuel on her body. She was burnt alive amid jeers over alleged blasphemy.

“There can not be a justification for such gruesome murder. Deborah Yakubu was murdered, and all those behind her death must be brought to justice,” Mr Abubakar said in the post. “My condolences to her family and friends.”

But the presidential hopeful rushed to delete the post on Facebook and Twitter shortly after Islamic netizens threatened not to cast their vote for him.

Mr Abubakar claimed his media team made the post without his approval.

“This evening I received information that a post was made that doesn’t agree with my orders. I use this to announce that any post without A. A. is not from me. May God protect us,” Mr Abubakar wrote in a follow-up post.

5: “They’re already urinating on themselves”: Rauf Aregbesola’s reaction to a video of Tinubu’s probable urine bag

“Won ti n to ara” was heard punctuating the then interior minister Rauf Aregbesola’s impassioned jabs aimed at Mr Tinubu in a viral video on social media back in February 2022.

Loosely translated from Yoruba, the expression means “they’re already urinating on themselves.”

The remarks came days after The Gazette published a report with video evidence that showed Mr Tinubu’s agbada was soaked behind.

Mr Tinubu had visited the Awujale of Ijebuland, and his agbada appeared soaked behind when he stood before the king.

His security aide also frantically covered his nose, fuelling rumours that an offensive odour might have triggered the reaction.

Speaking at a political gathering in Osun State before the elections, Mr Aregbesola said he was disappointed in his successor, Gboyega Oyetola, whom Mr Tinubu introduced to him.

Then, a faint voice from the crowd jeered: “Won ti n to ara!”

“Won ti n to ara!” Mr Aregbesola also chimed. Then the compere at the event re-echoed Mr Aregbesola’s “Won ti n to ara!” The refrain was in reference to the APC national leader’s disquieting outing in Ijebu Ode.

Mr Aregbesola would later apologise and beg for Mr Tinubu’s forgiveness, describing him as the “architect of his success.”

In September 2022, a photo emerged from Mr Tinubu’s camp in which he wore an inner device believed to be a ‘catheter bag’ to expel urine, further raising questions about his frail health status ahead of the elections.

A catheter is a device that collects urine into a drainage bag through an attached tube. It is typically used by people who cannot naturally pass urine.

The photo was a proof-of-life image to douse concerns about Mr Tinubu’s whereabouts, especially given that he had not been seen in public for about six months before the presidential elections.

6: Osinbajo should be selling gala and popcorn: Shettima

Then vice-presidential candidate of the APC, Kashim Shettima, threw jabs at his predecessor, Yemi Osinbajo, for throwing his hat in the ring and contesting for the ruling party’s presidential ticket.

Mr Shettima mocked Mr Osinbajo as a “nice man” who was unworthy to be president.

The former Borno governor said Mr Osinbajo was more suited to sell ice cream and gala, a popular beef snack in Nigeria.

“Osinbajo is a good man. He is a nice man. But nice men do not make good leaders. Because nice men tend to be nasty. Nice men should be selling popcorn, ice cream,” Mr Shettima said.

He later released a statement apologising to the former vice president for his unsavoury remarks.

7: Atiku’s SPV

Mike Achimugu, formerly Mr Abubakar’s close associate, leaked an audio tape of the former vice president admitting that he used Special Purpose Vehicles (SPV) to steal government funds for himself and former president Olusegun Obasanjo.

In the leaked audio, Mr Abubakar could be heard narrating how he took charge of establishing onshore shell businesses to serve as a conduit for cornering vast amounts from public works contracts for himself and Mr Obasanjo.

“What happened was when we came into office and I advised the president against open corruption,” Mr Abubakar said in the leaked tape. “I told him to give me three people you trust and I will prepare three companies in which they will be subscribers or rather the directors.”

“An SPV is a special-purpose vehicle. It is a company they incorporate to carry out certain activities,” Mr Abubakar said on the tape. “So that if there is any contract that we give they will act like consultants and they are given a fee. That fee is what we use to fund the party.”

Mr Achimugu leaked the tape ahead of the February 2023 elections, saying it was “to warn Nigerians and educate them before the elections to prevent them from making the greatest mistake ever”.

According to Mr Achimugu, “If Nigerians think that they have seen corruption before, let them wait until they make the mistake of voting the Atiku family into office,” Mr Achimugu said in a TVC interview.

Mr Achimugu subsequently switched allegiance to Mr Tinubu, who appointed him as director, public affairs and consumer protection at the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority in December 2023.

8: Posters of Osinbajo as Judas Iscariot flooded Abuja

As Christian faithful prepared for Easter celebrations in April 2022, campaign posters depicting former vice president Yemi Osinbajo as the biblical Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus Christ, flooded the nation’s capital.

Mr Tinubu’s supporters castigated Mr Osinbajo for challenging his former boss in the 2023 presidential race.

The caption on the poster bearing Mr Osinbajo’s downcast image read: “The Judas betrayed his master. Repent because Jesus is coming.”

Between 1999 and 2007, the vice president served as attorney-general and commissioner for justice in Lagos State under Mr Tinubu, the then governor.

It is also believed that Mr Osinbajo became President Muhammadu Buhari’s running mate with the help of Mr Tinubu, a highly influential politician instrumental to their 2015 and 2019 election victories.

He would later lose the APC presidential primary ticket to Mr Tinubu.

9: Pandora Papers featuring Peter Obi

An investigation carried out by over half a thousand journalists across the world, including journalists from Nigeria’s Premium Times, found that Mr Obi went to great lengths to open offshore entities, including Gabriella Investments Limited, incorporated in the British Virgin Islands and named after his daughter. Findings from the investigation were released in 2021.

Mr Obi paid a French company, Access International, to hire nominee directors for the company. These were figurehead individuals paid to sit on the company’s board to conceal the identities of the real owners.

Why Mr Obi, who carries himself as an anti-corruption campaigner, would hire figurehead directors to conceal the offshore entities was not known.

He also failed to disclose the company to the Code of Conduct Bureau as mandated by law for government officials after assuming office.

Asked why, Mr Obi told Premium Times that he didnt know he was supposed to disclose companies he co-owned with his family.

Mr Obi similarly failed to immediately withdraw from directing a private business as stipulated by Section Six of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act.

Records indicated that he remained the director of Next International (UK) Limited for over a year after he assumed his governorship duties in Anambra State. He became governor on March 17, 2006, but resigned on May 16, 2008.

He claimed he resigned immediately and gave his wife his resignation letter.

But the UK registry for companies insisted Mr Obi resigned on May 16, 2008, adding that the notice was filed online on June 16, 2008.

Mr Obi is contesting again in the 2027 presidential polls, this time under the Nigeria Democratic Congress. He chose former Kano governor Rabiu Kwankwaso as his running mate.

10: God bless PD-APC

Among the countless gaffes synonymous with Mr Tinubu’s campaign was when the then APC presidential candidate goofed during the flag-off of his candidacy in Jos, Plateau.

Ending his speech at the rally in November 2022, Mr Tinubu, to the surprise of supporters, said, “God bless Nigeria. God bless PD…,” before retracing his speech to say “APC”.