
Oluwadamilola Aderinoye, a former Miss Commonwealth Nigeria Culture (2015/2016), has surrendered to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) after evading arrest for eight months.
The ex-beauty queen turned herself in at the NDLEA Lagos command on August 28, 2024, after being declared wanted by the agency.
Aderinoye had been on the run since January 24, 2024, when NDLEA operatives raided her residence in the Lekki area of Lagos following credible intelligence linking her to illicit drug activities. During the raid, officials recovered 606 grams of Canadian Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis, along with an electronic weighing scale, drug packaging materials, and her black RAV 4 SUV.
According to a statement by NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, the raid took place at Aderinoye’s residence in the Oral Estate, Lekki. However, the former beauty queen managed to escape at the time and later claimed she had been hiding in Akure, Ondo State, before her surrender.
Massive Drug Seizures in Lagos and Rivers State
In related developments, the NDLEA announced the interception of over 31 million tramadol pills and bottles of codeine-based syrup worth ₦17.9 billion at the Port Harcourt Port Complex in Rivers State and Tincan Seaport in Lagos. The shipments, which originated from India, were seized following a 100% joint examination by the NDLEA, Nigerian Customs Service, and other security agencies.
The seizures, made between August 29 and 30, included 350,000 bottles of codeine syrup and 29.8 million tramadol pills. NDLEA operatives also recovered an additional 554,600 bottles of codeine from three containers at Tincan Seaport.
Arrests Linked to Drug Trafficking
Meanwhile, NDLEA operatives at the Port Harcourt International Airport arrested a suspect, Eze Emekan Don, on August 27 as he attempted to board a flight to Malabo, Equatorial Guinea. Don was found with 1,490 tramadol pills concealed as cosmetics in his luggage.
In Lagos, another suspect, Mustapha Ibrahim, was arrested on August 26 along Orchid Road, Ajah, with 1,122 kilograms of cannabis. Additionally, operatives in Niger State arrested Friday Gabriel on August 26 for transporting 1,900 tramadol capsules, 300 bottles of codeine syrup, and 600 packets of Exol-5 tablets.
The NDLEA continues its nationwide operations, with recent arrests in Bauchi State involving the seizure of 246.4 kilograms of cannabis hidden in a false compartment of a bus along the Bauchi-Gombe road.