Philip Tunde: NDLEA Arrests Italy-Bound Businessman With Illicit Substances Hidden in Shoe Soles
- NDLEA officers intercepted Philip Tunde, 38, at MMIA Lagos on September 27, 2026, while he was preparing to board a flight to Milan
- Agents allegedly discovered 4.80kg of illicit substances concealed inside the soles of eight pairs of shoes and the railings of four travelling bags
- The NDLEA also announced a string of drug busts across Kogi, Edo, and Plateau states in the same week
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A Nigerian businessman heading to Italy has been stopped at Lagos's Murtala Muhammed International Airport after drug enforcement agents allegedly uncovered nearly five kilograms of illicit white powder expertly hidden inside his luggage.
Source: Instagram
Philip Tunde, 38, was arrested on September 27, 2026, at the joint screening point of Terminal 2 while preparing to board a Royal Air Maroc flight to Milan.
According to a statement from Femi Babafemi, Director of Media and Advocacy at the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), officers subjected Tunde to a thorough search that turned up 4.80 kilogrammes of the alleged illicit substances split across two separate hiding spots.
Illicit substances found in shoes, bag railings
Agents allegedly recovered 16 parcels of illicit white powder from the soles of eight pairs of trainers and canvas shoes.
A further 195 wraps of the same substance were allegedly extracted from the metal railings of four travelling bags belonging to the Nigerian businessman.
The painstaking concealment method pointed to a sophisticated attempt to move the illicit substances through one of Nigeria's busiest international terminals.
The NDLEA's airport command has increasingly been at the centre of the agency's interception efforts, with the week's operations drawing a commendation for officers stationed at MMIA alongside colleagues at Apapa, Tincan, Port Harcourt, and several other commands across the country.
Wider crackdown across Nigerian states
The Tunde arrest was part of a broader set of operations the NDLEA publicised on October 4, 2026.
In Kogi State, officers stopped a Lagos-Abuja commuter bus on the Okene-Lokoja highway on September 30, recovering one kilogramme of alleged methamphetamine hidden in two sachets.
The suspected owner, Michael Chukwuememka Uzoma, 29, was subsequently arrested in Utako, Abuja.
In Edo State, a raid on the Uyere community home of Saturday Omimi, 35, yielded 32.2 kilograms of illicit sativa.
Separately, Osazuwa Iyabor Michael, 23, was picked up at the Auchi Bypass in Benin City carrying multiple drug types.
Plateau State saw the capture of Idris Mohammed Kurra, 47, a fugitive who had spent six years evading arrest after jumping bail while facing trial for possession of and dealing in 198 kilogrammes of skunk.
He was finally caught on September 29.
The agency also conducted sensitisation lectures at schools across Enugu, Lagos, Ikorodu, Kano, Ado Ekiti, and Lokoja as part of its wider anti-drug awareness campaign.
The Instagram post of the NDLEA announcing the arrest of businessman Philip Tunde is below:
Reactions to businessman Philip Tunde arrest
Nigerians responded swiftly online after the news of Philip Tunde's arrest broke.
YEN.com.gh has compiled some reactions from social media users below:
@midestouch6453 wrote:
"One of the reasons people won't take things from you when going abroad."
@sodiqolayemi said:
"At the end of everything, you will not hear anything about them again."
@emmanuel.iduh.585 commented:
"These are the only government organisations that are working in Nigeria today, while the remaining ones are doing nothing. The number one is EFCC. They are doing nothing in Nigeria."
NDLEA arrests businessman Lovely Chukwulobelu
Earlier, YEN.com.gh reported about the arrest of newlywed businessman Lovely Chukwulobelu, who was intercepted by the NDLEA at Enugu airport with 72 wraps of an alleged illicit substance.
The 25-year-old reportedly told investigators he turned to smuggling to pay off debts from his wedding, held just 12 days before his arrest.
His case sparked debate over the financial pressure and lavish spending surrounding weddings.
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Source: YEN.com.gh
