NDLEA Detains 22 Indian Crew Members After Cocaine Seizure on Vessel at Apapa Port

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has taken into custody 22 Indian crew members of a merchant vessel, MV Aruna Hulya, following the seizure of 31.5 kilograms of cocaine at the GDNL Terminal, Apapa Port, Lagos.

The drugs were discovered on Friday, January 2, 2026, during a search of the ship, which originated from the Marshall Islands.

In a statement issued yesterday, the NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Mr. Femi Babafemi, said:
“Those detained in connection with the discovery of the 31.5kg cocaine in hatch 3 of the ship include the Master of the Vessel, Sharma Shashi Bhushan, and 21 other crew members.”

The crew members listed include Bharati Manoj Kumar, Bhalerao Nilesh Mukund, Nadar Anthony Macson David, Kolusu Srinivasa Rao, Sagar Gaurav, Francis Anto Beemas Nester, Jagdeep Singh, Jai Parkash, Prabhukhan Singh, Nevage Sandesh Suresh, Pandey Prashant, Nittu Anand, Akash Babu, Dasari Raju, Reddy Nandika Sanjeeba, Rana Nivesh, Melethil Insaf Rahman, Barla Chantanya Krishna, Ghosh Arijit, Mondal Raihan, and Gangwar Shiv Om.

According to the agency, the arrests are part of broader nationwide operations against drug trafficking. In a related development, NDLEA operatives intercepted consignments of Ketamine, Ecstasy, and Tramadol pills concealed in sachets of coffee mix and book parcels destined for Zambia and the United Kingdom. These seizures were made at a courier company in Lagos on December 24 and 29, 2025.

In Oyo State, operatives on December 29, 2025, arrested a wanted female drug kingpin, Fatima Ilori, 65, popularly known as “Mama Kerosine,” in Ibadan. She was apprehended following the seizure of 238.4kg of skunk linked to her activities. Another suspect, Olusanya Abosede, 35, was also arrested at the Onireke/Elekuro area of the city.

In Borno State, NDLEA disrupted alleged drug supply routes to insurgents with the arrest of two suspects and the seizure of large quantities of Tramadol. Isa Mohammed, 26, was arrested with 9,150 ampoules of Tramadol injection along the Maiduguri–Gamboru Ngala road on Friday, January 2, 2026, while Musa Samaila, 30, was apprehended the same day with 34,000 Tramadol capsules at Biu Market.

Further operations in Lagos led to the recovery of 400kg of skunk and a van at the Mobolaji Johnson area on Thursday, January 1. In Jigawa State, a suspect, Bilya Ibrahim, 39, was arrested on December 30, 2025, at a motor park in Hadejia while attempting to transport 260 compressed blocks of skunk weighing 140.8kg, allegedly sourced from Taraba State and bound for Nguru, Yobe State.

Similarly, in Kwara State, NDLEA officers recovered 238.5kg of skunk from a residence in the Asadam area of Ilorin on December 30, while 32,000 pills of Tramadol and Diazepam were seized from another suspect, Abubakar Rabiu, 32, at Bode Saadu, Moro Local Government Area, on December 31, 2025.

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