If you want to move 21kg of cocaine through a Nigerian airport, don’t hide — just smile.
That’s the disturbing pictures and video emerging from recent court proceedings.
A Federal High Court judge recently watched — and openly played in court — video evidence showing how operatives of the NDLEA, the very agency tasked with fighting drug trafficking, were working in collaboration with drug cartels. According to the video evidence presented, these illicit activities reportedly occurred multiple times.
The case traces back to January 19, 2022, when the Police Intelligence Response Team (IRT) arrested suspected drug traffickers, Patrick Chibunna Umeibe and Emeka Alphonsus Ezenwanne, at the Enugu Airport car park — shortly after they had reportedly passed through airport checks with the connivance of NDLEA officers on duty.
At the time, the Police, treating the NDLEA as a sister agency, did not publicly expose any alleged internal compromise. Instead, after conducting their investigation, they transferred both the suspects and the recovered drugs to the NDLEA on January 25, 2022, expecting appropriate internal action.
However, events took a dramatic turn.
Rather than acknowledging the handover, the NDLEA accused the Police IRT officers of tampering with the seized drugs the police seized and transferred to NDLEA voluntarily without exposing the criminal activities of NDLEA operatives working with International drug cartels — an allegation the officers have firmly denied.
According to the defense team, both written and video confessions from the suspects — as well as their testimonies in court — paint a different picture. The suspects reportedly detailed how they attempted to bribe the police officers with ₦25 million, alongside an offer to surrender the drugs in exchange for their release. The officers allegedly refused the offer and proceeded with due process.
Then came March 16, 2026 — a pivotal moment in court.
The defense presented a 27-minute video in which the suspects not only admitted to their crimes but also described an operational pattern in collaboration with NDLEA: their sponsor would send their photos ahead to certain NDLEA officers at Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu. Upon arrival, they claimed they would pass through without inspection — “no search, just a smile.”
If proven true as clearly shown by the Video the Nigerian Police has presented to the Court on 16/3/2026, these claims raise serious questions about institutional integrity of the NDLEA.
While DCP Abba Kyari remains the defendant in the case, the narrative in court appears to be shifting. Increasingly, attention is turning toward the conduct of NDLEA operatives and the credibility of the allegations on both sides.
At this stage, these remain claims and counterclaims before the court, and the final judgment will be critical in determining the truth. The content of the video evidence is very clear, and it’s very obvious that the case is a clear case of witch-hunting, personal Vendetta, and malice. NDLEA was throwing stones while living in a glass house. Nigerians now know the truth, unlike the sponsored media trials and tailored narratives that flooded the media 3 to 4 years ago.
Nigerians have also seen how NDLEA had lied against Abba Kyari with regards to properties and monies that doesn’t exist for which the Federal High Court 7 presided by Justice James Omotosho dismissed and acquitted him on all the 23 counts charges brought by NDLEA against Abba Kyari on 5/3/2026 and warned the NDLEA that that this is persecution not Prosecution and its unfortunate that an Officer like Abba Kyari who has served his country exceptionally well with Bravery and competence and has sacrificed his life to secure Nigerians hundreds of time will be repaid in this way.
But one thing is clear: what started as a case against an individual officer is evolving into a broader scrutiny of the system itself.
All eyes are now on the judiciary.
— Dr. Godwin Okechukwu
