Pastor, wife nabbed with 11kg skunk concealed in hidden compartments of Honda Pilot SUV

Michael Olumide

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested Pastor Afolabi Hodonu of the Celestial Church of Christ, Agonvi Sea Beach, Badagry, and his wife, Mrs. Success Hodonu, after discovering 11 kilograms of skunk concealed in hidden compartments of their Honda Pilot SUV at Gbaji checkpoint on Thursday, 2nd April.

According to the Director, Media & Advocacy, NDLEA, Femi Babafemi, the arrest forms part of the agency’s ongoing crackdown on drug trafficking across Lagos State.

The arrest of the couple followed the apprehension of a fake security agent, Sunday Samuel, 35, at the same checkpoint on Monday, 30th March, while conveying 24.5 kilograms of skunk from Seme Border to Lagos.

Also, the agency dismantled a drug trafficking syndicate in a high-stakes, intelligence-led operation lasting three weeks.

During the operation, cocaine consignments concealed in tins of palm kernel extract destined for the United Kingdom were intercepted, the warehouse where the shipments were packaged was raided, and all three layers of the syndicate were unraveled, leading to the arrest of the kingpin.

The breakthrough began on Wednesday, 11th March 2026, when NDLEA officers of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Strategic Command, Ikeja, Lagos, intercepted 3.10 kilograms of cocaine at the airport’s export shed.

The illicit substance was meticulously hidden inside tins of palm kernel extract intended for shipment to the UK.

Two suspects handling the shipment, Idris Olayiwola Amoo and Akinlami Akinsoji Adedoyin, were promptly arrested.

To trace the sender and the head of the syndicate, a well-coordinated sting operation was carried out on Thursday, 2nd April, leading to the arrest of the sender, Ezemuwo Joel, who operated under a fake identity as Ajayi.

His arrest provided a link to the syndicate’s head, 52-year-old King Arinze, who was flushed out of a hideout in the Isolo area of Lagos. He was subsequently taken to his warehouse at 11 Ola Ifa Street, Bucknor, Isolo, where NDLEA operatives recovered 886 tins of palm kernel extract prepared for drug concealment; industrial tools, including a sealing machine and tin openers; paint sprays; 52 grams of cannabis sativa; and a pack of gloves. Arinze has since confessed to personally draining the oil from the tins to conceal the cocaine.

In a separate but equally significant operation in Borno State, NDLEA operatives on Wednesday, 1st April, intercepted a female drug supplier to bandit groups operating between the North East and Chad. 28-year-old Aisha Adamu was arrested along Gamboru Ngala Road in possession of 4.3 kilograms of Colorado, a potent synthetic strain of cannabis.

In Adamawa State, NDLEA officers on patrol along Namtari Road, Yola South, on Monday, 30th March, intercepted a trailer marked RUW 947 XA transporting 48,000 tramadol pills.

The truck driver, Abdulaziz Ismail Korede, was arrested, while a follow-up operation led to the arrest of the recipient, Idris Adamu.

Additionally, 60-year-old Idiatu Oladejo was arrested with 15 kilograms of skunk in Isale Osun, Osogbo, Osun State, on Wednesday, 1st April. NDLEA operatives, acting on credible intelligence, also raided the Itaogbolu Forest, Akure, Ondo State, where they recovered 351 kilograms of skunk and its seeds. No fewer than 28,600 tramadol capsules were seized from 66-year-old Aminu Usman Gembu when he was arrested at Aliade, Benue State, on Wednesday, 1st April.

In Edo State, suspect Roland Owie, 37, was arrested on Monday, 30th March, following a raid of his warehouse at Egbanke community, Orhionmwon LGA, where 1,378 kilograms of skunk were recovered.

A notorious drug dealer, 40-year-old Ayantola Omodunmomi (a.k.a. Iya Elle), was arrested on Wednesday, 1st April, at Eleta area of Ibadan, Oyo State. Intelligence and surveillance revealed that she used her 11-year-old daughter, Anjola, to deliver illicit drugs to customers. At the time of her arrest, 45.6 kilograms of skunk were recovered from her warehouse.

The War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) social advocacy activities by NDLEA commands continued across the country last week. Activities included WADA sensitization lectures delivered to students and staff of Okere Grammar School, Saki, Oyo; Shasha Comprehensive High School, Alimosho, Lagos; Ma’ahad Ahmad Turaki Islamiyya, Sabon Gari, Kano; Ezi-Awka Community Secondary School, Awka, Anambra; and Madrasatul Ihsan, Area One, Tsafe, Zamfara State, among others.

While commending the officers and men of MMIA, Seme, Borno, Oyo, Ondo, Osun, Edo, Adamawa, and Benue commands for last week’s arrests and seizures, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd) also praised counterparts nationwide for balancing drug supply reduction and demand reduction efforts.

“These successful operations are a testament to the Agency’s evolving intelligence capabilities and our unwavering commitment to choking the supply lines of drug cartels. Whether they hide behind legitimate businesses, religious titles, or complex concealment methods, we will find them,” Marwa stated.