The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has dismantled an international cocaine trafficking cartel that used Nigeria as a transit hub for moving illicit drugs to the United Kingdom and parts of Europe and Asia, arresting the syndicate’s Nigerian ringleader as he attempted to flee the country.
NDLEA Chairman Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd.) disclosed the operation while briefing journalists in Lagos, describing it as one of the most significant narcotics investigations the agency has undertaken in recent times.
The case began with a courier interception. Marwa said the investigation followed the seizure of 184.50 kilogrammes of cocaine concealed in a consignment being processed through a courier logistics company in Lagos — the largest single quantity of cocaine the agency has ever intercepted through a courier firm in the country, with an estimated street value of ₦39 billion. While it stands as a record for courier-based seizures, it still trails Nigeria’s largest cocaine bust overall — a 2,139.55-kilogramme haul recovered from a residential estate in Ikorodu, Lagos, in September 2022, which remains the biggest single cocaine seizure in the country’s history and led to the eventual conviction of four cartel leaders.
The scale of Tuesday’s find nonetheless prompted Marwa to constitute a Special Investigation Team to trace the entire network behind the shipment, from the couriers to the masterminds.
The trail led to two arrests. Investigators established that a staff member of the logistics firm, Lawal Mujab Kehinde, maintained a direct and sustained relationship with the cartel’s Nigerian coordinator, allegedly packaging and routing consignments to the UK, Europe and Asia for cash.
That coordinator was identified as Afolabi Kazeem Michael, better known online as “KC Luxury” — a social media influencer and businessman dealing in gold, jewellery, and luxury goods, whom the NDLEA says used his glamorous public profile to conceal a cocaine pipeline stretching from South America through Nigeria to the UK, Europe and Asia.
His capture came as he tried to skip the country. NDLEA operatives moved in on the night of August 13, 2026, arresting him at the boarding gate of Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, after credible intelligence indicated he intended to flee on a business-class flight to Paris — apprehending him just as he attempted to escape the reach of the law.
“This cartel leader did not walk into our custody voluntarily,” Marwa said.
At the time of his arrest, he was found in possession of €7,750, £2,800 and ₦100,000 in cash, alongside expensive jewellery consistent with proceeds of his illicit trade, while a subsequent search of his luxury apartment on Banana Island, Ikoyi, led to the recovery of several exotic vehicles.
Marwa framed the case as evidence of a coordinated international crackdown.
He described it as a proud moment for international cooperation, noting the near-simultaneous arrests of cartel members in Nigeria and the United Kingdom, and commended the agency’s international partners as well as its Special Investigation Team for unravelling the syndicate.
He warned that the agency would continue pursuing traffickers regardless of their wealth, social status or method of operation, declaring: “These operations send an unmistakable signal that this Agency’s reach extends into the ports, the forests, the luxury apartments, and the departure lounges alike, and that no sanctuary exists anywhere in Nigeria for those who traffic in poison.”
Investigations remain ongoing, with the agency focused on identifying other members and financial facilitators linked to the network.
NDLEA also disclosed that some UK-based associates of the syndicate have already been arrested by British authorities as part of the coordinated cross-border investigation.
