The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 34-year-old Ugandan woman, Farida Nansubuga, for allegedly attempting to smuggle 87 wraps of cocaine through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos.
According to a statement issued on Sunday by NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi, the suspect was apprehended on 3 November while preparing to board a flight to Uganda from Terminal 2 of the airport.
The arrest followed a joint screening operation involving NDLEA officers and aviation security personnel. A subsequent body search reportedly uncovered 87 wraps of cocaine weighing 1.15 kilogrammes, concealed around her pelvic region beneath multiple layers of underwear.
During interrogation, Nansubuga allegedly told investigators that she arrived in Nigeria on 29 October with members of her church to attend a prayer programme at the Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN) in Ikotun, Lagos.
She reportedly claimed that while other members of the group returned to Uganda after the programme, she stayed behind to collect a drug consignment on behalf of a friend identified as Joy. According to the NDLEA, she said she was linked to a local contact who delivered the cocaine and instructed her on how to conceal it before travelling. She allegedly expected to receive at least $1,000 for successfully delivering the drugs to Uganda.
In a separate operation at the Lagos airport, NDLEA operatives intercepted 750,000 tablets of Tapentadol 250mg, weighing 526 kilogrammes and valued at approximately N900 million.
The consignment, which arrived from Ahmedabad, India, aboard an Ethiopian Airlines flight, was allegedly falsely declared as Paracetamol tablets. Officials discovered the shipment during a joint examination involving the NDLEA, Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies.
The agency also announced the seizure of 32 parcels of Loud, a potent strain of cannabis weighing 16.15 kilogrammes, concealed inside two wooden sofas shipped from Houston, Texas, United States.
A freight agent, Ibrahim Abdulwaheed Adewale, was arrested while attempting to clear the consignment. A follow-up operation led to the arrest of Adeoye Sarafa Ojo, who allegedly arrived to collect the shipment on behalf of another individual.
NDLEA further disclosed that it dismantled a network involved in importing chemicals used in the production of Colorado, a synthetic cannabis product.
The agency said nine parcels hidden in cartons of snacks arriving from the United Kingdom were intercepted. While two parcels contained cannabis, forensic analysis reportedly confirmed that the remaining packages contained chemicals used in manufacturing synthetic cannabis.
The anti-narcotics agency also reported major drug seizures and arrests across several states, including Lagos, Ondo, Ekiti, Edo, Taraba, Enugu and Delta.
Among the operations, NDLEA recovered over 1.8 tonnes of cannabis in Ondo State, destroyed a one-hectare cannabis plantation, arrested suspects in Taraba with more than 226 kilogrammes of compressed cannabis, and seized tramadol, ketamine and other controlled substances in Enugu.
Commenting on the operations, NDLEA Chairman Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.) said the arrest of the Ugandan suspect highlighted how drug trafficking networks exploit religious activities and international travel to recruit couriers. He commended officers involved in the operations and urged them to sustain the fight against drug trafficking and abuse nationwide.