Agorehmi Bright, Reporting
THE Nigerian Navy has arrested three suspected drug traffickers and seized a significant cache of illicit substances in its ongoing battle against maritime crime.
Personnel from NNS LUGARD carried out the operation on 8 September 2026, intercepting exactly 71 kilogrammes of substances suspected to be Cannabis sativa.
The consignment was said to have been cleverly concealed in the rear compartment of a large wooden commercial boat. The interception took place during a routine riverine patrol near the Chintako Community Jetty in Bassa Local Government Area, Kogi State.
The successful mission was the direct result of credible intelligence regarding the movement of the drugs.
Nigeria has a protracted history of battling narcotics smuggling across its extensive and porous maritime boundaries. The origins of cannabis cultivation and trafficking in the region trace back to the post-World War II era, and over the decades criminal syndicates have continually exploited the nation’s complex network of inland waterways and coastal routes as transit points.
To counter this enduring threat, the Nigerian Navy and the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have forged a critical, long-standing partnership. This collaboration has yielded major seizures, such as the recent interception of 756kg of cannabis by NNS Beecroft in Lagos just weeks before the River Niger arrest.
Following the Kogi State operation, the three suspects and the recovered narcotics were officially handed over to the NDLEA, Kogi State Command, on 9 September 2026.
According to an NDLEA representative, the agency’s investigations will strictly “seek to establish the source and ownership of the consignment and identify those behind its supply”.
Navy Captain Abiodun Folorunsho, Director of Naval Information, emphasised the operation’s strategic value.
Captain Folorunsho stated that the seizure “highlights the importance of intelligence-led maritime enforcement in disrupting the movement of illicit drugs through Nigeria’s inland waterways and strengthening the wider fight against organised criminal activity”.
