NDLEA Arrests South African Woman, Seizes ₦10.3bn Worth Of Drugs
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 38-year-old South African woman, identified as Jessica Ann, for allegedly attempting to smuggle 5.75 kilograms of heroin into Nigeria through the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA), Abuja.
According to the agency, the suspect arrived in Nigeria from Cambodia via Doha on Qatar Airways flight QR1433, travelling with her three-year-old son.
NDLEA alleged that she used the child as a cover in an attempt to avoid security checks.
In a statement issued on Sunday by the agency's spokesman, Femi Babafemi, operatives became suspicious after the woman denied travelling with any checked luggage.
However, officers matched baggage claim tags attached to her passport with two suitcases containing 14 large blocks of heroin.
She later admitted ownership of the luggage, claiming she had forgotten she checked the bags.
Preliminary investigations indicate that the suspect is believed to be linked to a transnational drug trafficking network operating between Cambodia and South Africa, allegedly involving her husband or partner, Jan Coenraad De Jager.
In another operation at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, NDLEA officers arrested 48-year-old Onyechere Daniel Chinadu, who arrived from Madagascar through Addis Ababa aboard an Ethiopian Airlines flight.
A search of his luggage reportedly uncovered 87 wraps of methamphetamine concealed inside clothing.
During interrogation, the suspect said he had worked as a commercial motorcycle rider in Lagos for 15 years before being recruited into drug trafficking by a friend based in Uganda.
He further claimed he swallowed additional drug pellets in Uganda before travelling to Madagascar but was denied entry by immigration authorities and redirected to Lagos.
NDLEA placed him under medical observation after he was unable to state the exact number of pellets he had ingested.
Over the next three days, he excreted 13 additional wraps, bringing the total recovery to 100 wraps of methamphetamine weighing 1.715 kilograms.
The agency also announced the seizure of 4,143.5 kilograms of Canadian Loud cannabis valued at more than ₦10.3 billion during an operation at the Apapa Seaport in Lagos.
NDLEA said the latest arrests and seizures underscore its continued efforts to dismantle international drug trafficking networks and curb the flow of illicit substances into Nigeria.
According to the agency, the suspect arrived in Nigeria from Cambodia via Doha on Qatar Airways flight QR1433, travelling with her three-year-old son.
NDLEA alleged that she used the child as a cover in an attempt to avoid security checks.
In a statement issued on Sunday by the agency's spokesman, Femi Babafemi, operatives became suspicious after the woman denied travelling with any checked luggage.
However, officers matched baggage claim tags attached to her passport with two suitcases containing 14 large blocks of heroin.
She later admitted ownership of the luggage, claiming she had forgotten she checked the bags.
Preliminary investigations indicate that the suspect is believed to be linked to a transnational drug trafficking network operating between Cambodia and South Africa, allegedly involving her husband or partner, Jan Coenraad De Jager.
In another operation at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, NDLEA officers arrested 48-year-old Onyechere Daniel Chinadu, who arrived from Madagascar through Addis Ababa aboard an Ethiopian Airlines flight.
A search of his luggage reportedly uncovered 87 wraps of methamphetamine concealed inside clothing.
During interrogation, the suspect said he had worked as a commercial motorcycle rider in Lagos for 15 years before being recruited into drug trafficking by a friend based in Uganda.
He further claimed he swallowed additional drug pellets in Uganda before travelling to Madagascar but was denied entry by immigration authorities and redirected to Lagos.
NDLEA placed him under medical observation after he was unable to state the exact number of pellets he had ingested.
Over the next three days, he excreted 13 additional wraps, bringing the total recovery to 100 wraps of methamphetamine weighing 1.715 kilograms.
The agency also announced the seizure of 4,143.5 kilograms of Canadian Loud cannabis valued at more than ₦10.3 billion during an operation at the Apapa Seaport in Lagos.
NDLEA said the latest arrests and seizures underscore its continued efforts to dismantle international drug trafficking networks and curb the flow of illicit substances into Nigeria.
