NDLEA Seizes ISIS-Linked Captagon Drug in Kwara, 5 Years After Africa’s First Bust

Nigeria’s drug enforcement agency has seized Captagon in Kwara State — the ISIS-linked stimulant that first appeared in the country exactly five years ago — and the latest bust came alongside a separate case where a businessman was caught with 45 wraps of cocaine he had swallowed.

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) disclosed the seizures on Sunday. NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi confirmed that operatives on patrol along the Bode Saadu road in Kwara State intercepted a trailer on Tuesday, April 21, 2026. A search of one passenger, 33-year-old Nasiru Mu’azu, turned up “10 packs of captagon consisting of 10,000 pills and nine packets of Tapentadol 250mg.”

What is Captagon and why it’s significant

Captagon is a highly addictive amphetamine-type stimulant widely used across the Middle East. The NDLEA described its effects in stark terms: it “produces a euphoric intensity in users, allowing them to stay awake for days, making them fearless, and predisposing them to reckless action.” The agency also noted that its “production and sale are controlled by militias and large criminal groups linked to the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) as a means of generating funds for weapons and combatants.” Each pill can fetch as much as $25 on the street.

Africa’s first recorded Captagon seizure happened at the Apapa seaport in Lagos five years ago — also by NDLEA. The Kwara seizure shows the drug is still moving through Nigeria.

The other cases from the same operation

A separate operation at the same Bode Saadu patrol point on April 24 netted a far larger haul from a truck marked RMY-70XA: 155,900 capsules of Tramadol, 6,000 ampoules of Tramadol injection, 3,000 tablets of Co-Codamol, and 9,000 tablets of Bromazepam, all hidden in a false compartment. A 24-year-old suspect, Aminu Isah, was arrested.

In Oyo State, operatives pulled a passenger from a commercial bus on April 21. A body scan confirmed he had swallowed drugs; he later excreted 45 wraps of cocaine. The NDLEA did not name the businessman but said he claims to be a trader.

The spread of these seizures — Kwara, Oyo, and the ISIS-linked drug in the mix — points to an active trafficking network that NDLEA is working to disrupt. The Captagon seizure in particular carries symbolic weight: five years in, and the drug is still finding its way into Nigeria.

Sources: Punch, Vanguard, Sahara Reporters