Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have uncovered a staggering array of contraband, discovering military-grade ammunition hidden within food staples and thousands of tramadol pills concealed in everyday condiments. These seizures, conducted in separate operations, highlight the ever‑evolving and desperate tactics used by drug cartels and arms traffickers to move their deadly cargo under the radar of security forces. The discoveries were made public on Sunday, May 17, 2026, through a statement released by the agency’s spokesman, Femi Babafemi, on his official X account.
In the first of the two shocking interceptions, NDLEA officers discovered a large cache of military-grade ammunition cleverly concealed inside bags of cassava flakes, a staple food more commonly known as “garri”. The statement shared by the agency noted that in the course of routine searches for illicit drug concealment, officers often stumble upon other items that pose serious threats to national security. A video of the discovery was attached to the statement, showing the ammunition buried within the foodstuff . This ingenious method of concealment raises serious concerns about the potential links between drug trafficking networks and those arming militant groups and bandits terrorising the country, as the ammunition was likely destined for criminal operations in the North-West or North-Central regions.
In a separate interception conducted in a different location, NDLEA operatives uncovered thousands of high‑dosage tramadol pills hidden inside a keg of red palm oil. The seizure, which focused on 225mg tramadol tablets, a potent opioid often abused by young people and insurgents, represents a significant victory in the agency’s war against substance abuse. The discovery of the pills in a container of red oil also reveals the increasing sophistication of drug cartels, who are now disguising hard drugs within common household food items to beat sophisticated scanning technologies and evade detection by security forces.
Upon sharing the news on social media, Femi Babafemi included a video of the two startling discoveries. The post was met with shock and awe from the online community, with users expressing disbelief at the lengths criminals will go to transport weapons and drugs, turning harmless food items into vessels of death and addiction.
Apart from these two headline‑grabbing drug busts, the NDLEA has also announced a string of other successful interdictions across the country. In a related development, the agency intercepted two consignments of cocaine and various opioids concealed in the walls of cartons used to package clothes and other items being shipped to the United Kingdom and Australia. Those seizures were recorded at a courier company in Lagos on Friday, May 15, 2026 . In the Federal Capital Territory, a 29-year-old businessman who specialises in producing drug‑laced cakes and cookies for parties and social gatherings was arrested in the Life Camp area of Abuja. Approximately 800 grams of skunk and 2.70 kg of drug‑laced cookies were recovered from him .
These operations are part of the agency's ongoing efforts under its Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, retired Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), to aggressively clamp down on illicit drug trafficking and other criminal activities threatening national security. The NDLEA has not specified the location of the garri ammunition seizure, but it comes amid a wider crackdown on the movement of weapons in the North-Central region. Only a few days earlier, on May 12, 2026, NDLEA officers on patrol along the Abuja-Kaduna highway intercepted a suspect, 35-year-old Abdullahi Hassan, who was caught conveying 1,989 rounds of RLA 7.62mm ammunition concealed in fresh white cassava granules . That suspect and the large cache of ammunition have since been transferred to another security agency for further investigation. The frequency of these seizures points to a well‑established, sophisticated smuggling pipeline moving arms and drugs along the country's major corridors.
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