The operation, codenamed “Operation Global Net,” culminated in coordinated raids over the past week, involving intelligence sharing with international partners including Interpol and the UK’s National Crime Agency. 

NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi revealed during a press briefing in Abuja that the cartel, active for over two years, specialized in smuggling cocaine from South America via Nigeria to Europe, Asia, and Oceania, using sophisticated concealment methods like dissolving drugs in liquid solutions and hiding them in food shipments.

Among the arrests were two Nigerian nationals—identified as Chukwuma Eze (42) and Fatima Abdul (38)—and a Brazilian accomplice, Roberto Silva (45), who served as the primary liaison for sourcing cocaine from Brazilian ports. 

Eze, described as the cartel’s logistics head based in Lagos, was apprehended at a warehouse in Apapa, where authorities uncovered 450 kilograms of cocaine hidden in consignments of dried fish and palm oil destined for the UK. 

Abdul, operating from Kano, coordinated financial transfers to the UAE for money laundering, while Silva was nabbed at Lagos’ Murtala Muhammed International Airport attempting to board a flight to Dubai with encrypted documents.

In Australia, NDLEA’s tip-off led to the seizure of 120 kilograms of heroin rerouted through Nigerian intermediaries, valued at ₦2.1 billion, while in the UK, 200 kilograms of methamphetamine were intercepted at Heathrow Airport, concealed in electronics shipments from Nigeria, worth ₦3.2 billion. 

Additional hauls in Brazil and the UAE included precursor chemicals and cannabis worth over ₦1.1 billion. 

“This syndicate exploited Nigeria’s position as a transit hub, but our enhanced surveillance and global partnerships have crippled their operations,” Babafemi stated, crediting advanced tech like AI-driven scanning and undercover agents for the breakthroughs.

The arrests follow a surge in cross-border drug flows amid global supply chain disruptions, with NDLEA reporting a 35% rise in interceptions this year. 

The agency has frozen bank accounts linked to the cartel holding laundered funds exceeding ₦500 million and is collaborating with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for further probes. 

Eze and his co-conspirators face charges under the NDLEA Act, with potential life sentences if convicted.

International reactions have been positive, with the US Embassy in Abuja praising the “exemplary cooperation” and pledging continued support.