The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) says its operatives have arrested 40-year-old Yussuf Abayomi Azeez, a wanted “drug lord”, at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos.
Azeez was on his way to Saudi Arabia for Umrah.
In a statement on Sunday, Femi Babafemi, NDLEA spokesperson, said the arrest followed months of intelligence gathering and surveillance on Azeez’s “criminal activities”.
Babafemi said the alleged kingpin had previously been charged for drug offences in the UK but jumped bail and returned to Nigeria, where he reportedly set up a massive clandestine laboratory in Lekki for the production of Colorado, a deadly synthetic cannabis, and other illicit substances.
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“At about 6:30am on Thursday 6th November 2025, Yussuf walked into the waiting hands of NDLEA operatives at the Lagos airport while attempting to board his flight to Saudi Arabia for Umrah,” the statement reads.
The spokesperson said he was subsequently taken to his Ogombo, Lekki laboratory, which had been under surveillance, where he was found with another suspect, 43-year-old Abideen Kekere-Ekun.
“Inside the massive building, operatives from the Agency’s Directorate of Forensic and Chemical Monitoring were able to dismantle all installed laboratory equipment, precursor chemicals and already produced illicit substances including Colorado, all weighing 148.3 kilograms,” the statement added.
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Babafemi said the NDLEA has also recorded a series of high-profile drug seizures across the country in the past week, including designer drugs, methamphetamine, tramadol, and large consignments of cannabis.
He said operations in Niger, Taraba, Kogi, Edo, Bayelsa, and Abuja led to the arrest of several suspects and the confiscation of hundreds of kilogrammes of narcotics.
Commenting on the arrest and other operations, Buba Marwa, NDLEA chairman, said the dismantling of yet another clandestine laboratory for the production of Colorado bodes well for the future.
“Let it be known to those still hiding in the dark that the NDLEA supported by our local and international law enforcement partners will continue to hunt them and bring them to justice,” he said.
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