The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 43-year-old makeup artist, Adekoya Mary, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, for attempting to smuggle 2.2 kilograms of cocaine to India.
Adekoya, who claimed she was travelling for fibroid surgery, was apprehended on June 16 while boarding a Qatar Airways flight to India via Doha.
According to a statement by NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi, the cocaine was concealed within the walls of her suitcase.
The suspect later confessed she was motivated by financial gain and was working for a drug baron, Akeem Ayinde Adekanbi, currently at large.
In related operations across the country, NDLEA made several other arrests and seizures:
On June 19, operatives intercepted a shipment of female dresses laced with 1.3kg of Loud, a potent cannabis strain, en route to Bahrain via a Lagos courier service. Another shipment containing 850 grams of cocaine hidden in cloth hangers bound for Australia was also uncovered.
In Bauchi, two suspects—37-year-old Ibrahim Galadima and 28-year-old Ibrahim Muhammed—were arrested with over one million opioid pills, including tramadol and diazepam.
In Kaduna, 38-year-old Bishir Isyaku was caught with 14.2kg of cannabis and 198kg of rubber solution disguised in charcoal sacks. Meanwhile, six suspects were arrested in Abuja on June 18 with quantities of skunk and methamphetamine.
In Kano, NDLEA officers seized 56.2kg of cannabis from two suspects on the Zaria-Kano road.
Additional arrests included individuals found with thousands of tramadol capsules and dozens of kilograms of cannabis.
In Kwara State, a 22-year-old student of Kwara State Polytechnic, Olotin Nifemi, was arrested on June 19 with 1kg of cannabis.
She was described as a known supplier to other students.
A major operation in Edo State on June 20 led to the destruction of over 4.2 tonnes of cannabis at a camp in Uzebba forest and the arrest of a suspect, Albert Shamaki.
Further raids in Emado and Igueben towns resulted in the arrest of two women and the seizure of drugs including Colorado, Loud, Molly, and tramadol.
Babafemi said the arrests and seizures are part of intensified efforts to dismantle drug networks across the country.