Authorities in India have arrested two Nigerian nationals in separate operations this week over alleged cocaine trafficking, highlighting growing concerns about foreign involvement in the country’s drug trade.
In Hyderabad, excise officials detained a Nigerian woman on Friday after recovering 7.5 grams of cocaine from her possession. The district excise task force, acting on intelligence that she had arrived from Mumbai to distribute the drugs locally, intercepted her in the central Paradise area shortly after her arrival.
Investigators found five packets containing the cocaine in her belongings. Preliminary inquiries revealed that she had purchased the drugs in Mumbai for approximately ₹15,000 (around N1.8 million) and intended to sell them at a profit in Hyderabad. She was reportedly waiting in an autorickshaw to hand the consignment to an unidentified buyer.
A case has been filed against her under India’s Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, and officials are probing the source of the drugs and her network.
Meanwhile, in New Delhi, 35-year-old Nigerian national John Chibuike was arrested in Mehrauli after police seized 1 kilogram of high-grade cocaine from his residence in Islam Colony. Police said Chibuike, who has a prior NDPS record from 2022, is suspected of running a cocaine supply syndicate across the capital.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (South) Anant Mittal confirmed that the seizure represented a significant setback for drug distribution networks in South and South-East Delhi. Authorities are now working to dismantle the entire syndicate, tracing the supply chain and identifying possible local and international collaborators. A formal case has been lodged at Mehrauli Police Station under the relevant NDPS provisions.
The arrests follow a similar crackdown in Bengaluru, Karnataka, where Nigerian national Samuel Ikkena, 44, was apprehended by police in Yelahanka for allegedly operating a major MDMA (ecstasy) distribution ring. Investigators said Ikkena sourced the drugs near Bannerghatta and sold them through a structured illegal network, with authorities recovering MDMA valued at approximately Rs 2 crore (over N290 million).
These incidents have raised alarms over the role of foreign nationals in India’s illicit drug trade, prompting law enforcement agencies to intensify intelligence-driven operations.