A shocking drug trafficking plot has been busted after operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) arrested a businessman who hid tramadol pills inside life-sized mannequins meant for cross-border movement.
The suspect, 37-year-old Ani Onyebuchi Romans, was intercepted by NDLEA officers on patrol along the Oron–Ibaka Road in Oron Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State on Friday, January 9. He was travelling with full-body mannequins allegedly destined for Cameroon under the guise of a clothing business.
What appeared like harmless shop dummies turned into a major drug haul when NDLEA operatives discovered that the mannequins had been carefully stuffed with tramadol pills weighing a total of 5.3 kilograms.
Confirming the arrest, NDLEA spokesman, Femi Babafemi, revealed:
“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 mannequin drug bust was one of several high-profile interdiction operations carried out by the NDLEA across the country within the past week.
In another startling arrest in Akwa Ibom State, NDLEA operatives rearrested an 80-year-old ex-convict, Jeremiah Isaiah Nkanta, barely three years after he served a prison term for drug trafficking.
Nkanta was apprehended on Saturday, January 10, at Mmanta-Abak Village in Abak Local Government Area, where operatives recovered 5.7 kilograms of skunk, a potent strain of cannabis, from his residence.
The agency disclosed, “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.”
The NDLEA dragnet also swept through Oyo State, where multiple arrests were made in Ibadan with the recovery of assorted illicit drugs including Colorado, Ghana Loud, Canadian Loud, Scottish Loud, and skunk.
One of the major suspects arrested was 45-year-old Remi Bamidele, widely known as “Aluko the Mafia,” from whom 10.696 kilograms of various cannabis strains and two vehicles were seized.
“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,” further details from the agency stated.
Additional arrests and seizures were also recorded in Edo, Niger, Taraba, and Adamawa states, as the NDLEA intensified its nationwide crackdown on drug trafficking networks.
