Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency have arrested a 37-year-old businessman, Ani Romans, and recovered large quantities of tramadol concealed inside mannequins he was transporting for his clothing business.
Romans was intercepted by NDLEA officers on patrol along Oron–Ibaka Road in Oron Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State on Friday, January 9, while travelling with full-body mannequins allegedly meant for onward movement to Cameroon.
In a statement on Sunday, the agency’s spokesman, Femi Babafemi, said a search of the items revealed that the mannequins were stuffed with tramadol pills weighing a total of 5.3kg.
“In Akwa Ibom State, NDLEA operatives on patrol along Oron–Ibaka Road in Oron LGA on Friday, January 9, intercepted a 37-year-old businessman, Ani Onyebuchi Romans, while travelling with full-body mannequins for his clothing business in Cameroon. A search of the mannequins revealed that they were stuffed with tramadol pills weighing 5.3 kilograms.
“The suspect claims he resides in Cameroon and was reportedly returning to his base after the Christmas and New Year holidays when he was apprehended.
“It was revealed that he bought the drugs in Onitsha, Anambra State, and was trafficking them to Cameroon to sell, using two mannequins to conceal the opioids,” the statement partly read.
The arrest was part of a series of interdiction operations carried out by NDLEA across several states in the past week.
Babafemi also said that an 80-year-old ex-convict, Jeremiah Isaiah Nkanta, was rearrested on Saturday, January 10, in Mmanta-Abak Village, Abak Local Government Area, with 5.7kg of skunk, a strain of cannabis.
Nkanta had previously been convicted and sentenced to two years in prison in 2022 for drug trafficking.
The statement added, “Barely three years after he was arrested, prosecuted, and sentenced to two years imprisonment for dealing in illicit drugs, an 80-year-old grandpa, Jeremiah Nkanta, has again been nabbed by operatives of the NDLEA for returning to the criminal trade.
“Notorious for illicit drug business, Nkanta was first arrested by NDLEA on December 14, 2022, prosecuted, and sentenced to two years in jail by a Federal High Court in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.
“Not ready to let go of the old habit, Nkanta returned to the illicit drug trade, and following credible intelligence, NDLEA operatives on Saturday, January 10, 2025, tracked the octogenarian ex-convict to his Mmanta-Abak Village, Abak LGA, where he was arrested with 5.7 kilograms of skunk in his residence.”
In Oyo State, NDLEA operatives arrested several suspects in Ibadan and recovered assorted illicit drugs, including Colorado, Ghana Loud, Canadian Loud, Scottish Loud, and skunk.
Among those arrested was 45-year-old Remi Bamidele, also known as “Aluko the Mafia,” from whom 10.696 kilograms of various cannabis strains and two vehicles were recovered.
“At Adegbayi area of Ibadan, NDLEA officers on Friday, January 9, arrested Adeola Toheeb, 27, with various quantities of Colorado, Ghana Loud, and skunk, while Habeeb Ali, 29, was nabbed at Ring Road, Ibadan, with 1.264 kg of Colorado, Scottish Loud, and skunk. Not less than One Million Three Hundred and Seven Thousand One Hundred Naira (₦1,307,100) in cash was also recovered from him at the point of arrest on Saturday, January 10,” the statement added.
Other arrests were recorded in Edo, Niger, Taraba, and Adamawa states, where quantities of cannabis and tramadol were seized from different suspects.
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