The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) says it has dismantled an international organised criminal group (IOCG) operating across Nigeria, the United Kingdom, Brazil, Australia, and the United Arab Emirates, arresting three kingpins and intercepting a cocaine shipment valued at ₦5.3 billion.
NDLEA spokesman, Femi Babafemi, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday, noting that the two-week operation was coordinated across Lagos.
According to him, the breakthrough came on August 26, 2025, when officers at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, intercepted 76 cartons of textile materials bound for Sydney, Australia.
“A thorough search of the shipment led to the recovery of 16 big blocks of cocaine weighing 17.9 kilograms hidden in lace materials packed with local charms to provide spiritual cover against law enforcement detection,” Babafemi said.
The consignment, he added, had an estimated street value of 5.3 million Australian dollars (₦5.3 billion).
The first arrest was of Olashupo Michael Oladimeji, a freight agent linked to the shipment. Investigations later unmasked other leaders of the cartel, including Muaezee Ademola Ogunbiyi and Shola Adegoke.
Ogunbiyi, described as the group’s Nigerian coordinator, was arrested on September 3 at a hotel in Ikeja GRA. A subsequent search of his Lekki residence yielded 21 parcels of Canadian Loud cannabis weighing 10.90kg and a pump-action gun with cartridges.
The agency also raided a property at 13 Reverend Ogunbiyi Street, Ikeja GRA, used as a packaging hub for drug exports, where Adegoke was arrested. A black Range Rover SUV on the premises contained 17 parcels of Loud cannabis weighing 9.60kg. A Toyota Venza earlier seized from Ogunbiyi was also linked to the cartel.
“Investigations revealed that while Ogunbiyi coordinates operations in Nigeria, one Adebisi Ademola Omoyele, also known as ‘Mr. Bee,’ currently hiding in Dubai, is the ringleader of the criminal network and oversees their overseas operations,” Babafemi said.
The NDLEA further revealed that Adegoke had been jailed in the UK in 2021 for methamphetamine trafficking before being deported to Nigeria in 2024. Ogunbiyi, on the other hand, had served a 14-year jail term in the UK for murder before returning to Nigeria about eight years ago.
