The agency said the suspect, who works as a caregiver in the United Kingdom, was arrested at the departure hall of Terminal 2 of the airport on Sunday, June 28, while attempting to board a Virgin Atlantic flight to London.

According to a statement released on Sunday by the NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, a thorough search of the suspect’s luggage led to the discovery of 31 large wraps of cocaine disguised as hands of plantain and packed alongside other food items.

Babafemi said, “A thorough search of her bags resulted in the discovery of 31 big wraps of cocaine which were packaged to appear like plantain hands, weighing a total of 13 kilograms. In her statement, the elderly woman admitted full ownership of the recovered cocaine exhibits.”

He also announced the arrest of a 45-year-old PhD student at the University of Putra, Malaysia, Nwabueze Felix Onyeka, over an attempt to export cocaine concealed inside cartons of Orijin Bitters bound for Kuala Lumpur.

Babafemi said Onyeka was arrested in Ekwusigo Local Government Area of Anambra State on June 29 after investigators traced him as the alleged leader of a drug trafficking syndicate.

He disclosed that operatives had earlier intercepted 36 parcels of cocaine weighing 5.80 kilograms hidden within the walls of nine cartons of the herbal drink that formed part of a consolidated cargo destined for Malaysia.

According to him, four suspects were initially arrested in Lagos during investigations, including the cargo agent, Alalade Taiwo Azeez; the driver who conveyed the consignment, Ndem Ogbonna Kelechi; a trader at ASPANDA Market, Trade Fair Complex, Okeke Tochukwu Chimezie; and Igwilo Chidi Henry, who allegedly supplied the cartons used to conceal the drugs.

Babafemi said, “The efforts eventually paid off, leading to the unmasking of Nwabueze hiding in his village Aziora, Ozubulu, Anambra State, as the leader of the syndicate.”

In Taraba State, the NDLEA said its operatives arrested a 30-year-old suspect, Daniel Harrison Ugwuoke, along the Zaki-Biam Road in Wukari Local Government Area on Saturday, July 4.

The agency said 43,980 capsules of Tramadol were recovered from two vehicle fuel tanks specially modified to conceal the drugs.

Similarly, NDLEA operatives arrested Boniface Agu, 65, and Monday Nwaeze, 50, during a raid in Gwantu Local Government Area of Kaduna State on July 2, where they allegedly recovered 1.7 kilograms of methamphetamine.

In Ebonyi State, a 65-year-old suspect, Francis Ifara Eja, was arrested with 231.7 kilograms of skunk at Ikwo on July 4, while a 75-year-old suspect, Alhaji Babani, was apprehended with 15 kilograms of skunk at Kurgwi in Qua’anpan Local Government Area of Plateau State on July 3.

The agency also reported that two suspects, Dahiru Mohammed, 65, and Isiya Lawan, 36, were arrested in Gombe State on July 1 with 587 blocks of cannabis sativa weighing 556 kilograms at Kuri village in Yamaltu-Deba Local Government Area.

Beyond enforcement operations, the NDLEA said its commands nationwide sustained the War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) campaign through sensitisation programmes in schools, workplaces, worship centres and communities.

According to Babafemi, the awareness activities were conducted at Girls Secondary School, Abagana, Anambra State; Government Technical College, Obe, Enugu State; Adeola Odutola College, Ijebu Ode, Ogun State; and the FCE Staff Demonstration School, Kabuga, Kano State, among other locations.

Commending officers involved in the recent operations, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), praised the commands for combining enforcement with public enlightenment.

Babafemi quoted Marwa as saying he “commended the officers and men of MMIA, Taraba, Kaduna, Ebonyi, Plateau, and Gombe Commands for the arrests and seizures,” noting that “their drug supply reduction efforts balanced with WADA sensitisation activities,” while charging them and other officers across the country to continue to raise the operational bar.

The operation benefited from international collaboration between the police services of Morocco, France, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Portugal, as well as the Intelligence Center on Terrorism and Organized Crime (CITCO) and the Maritime Analysis and Operations Centre – Narcotics (MAOC-N), the Spanish Deputy Directorate of Customs Surveillance (DAVA) said in a statement.

Since the summer of 2024, this vessel had been suspected of being used for large-scale international drug trafficking and, thanks to international cooperation, it was intercepted, DAVA recalled, noting that the five crew members on board the Cameroonian-flagged vessel were arrested.

The operation was carried out as part of a case investigated by the Directorate of Customs Intelligence and Investigation (DNRED), in collaboration with Moroccan authorities, into the criminal group operating with this vessel.

This case was linked to the investigation conducted in Spain by the Customs Surveillance Service of the Tax Agency and the Civil Guard, which was investigating the “Sky White” as a supply vessel responsible for delivering narcotics to other, smaller vessels in areas near the Canary Islands or the Iberian Peninsula.

The investigation was supported by the police services of the United Kingdom (NCA), the United States (DEA), and Portugal (Polícia Judiciária), coordinated by CITCO and the Atlantic Drug Trafficking Analysis Centre.

With the support of the Spanish Armed Forces, a boarding operation was set up on the vessel in international waters west of the Canary Islands, the statement noted, adding that the operation was carried out from a navy vessel by members of the Civil Guard’s Special Intervention Unit.

On board the vessel, a 22-meter-long tugboat, about 3,000 kilos of cocaine were discovered, hidden inside its structure. The vessel was in a deplorable condition for navigation, with serious safety deficiencies that posed a major risk to the crew, made up of four people from Bangladesh and one from Venezuela, who were arrested as suspected drug traffickers.

The operation concluded with the arrival of the navy vessel in Tenerife to unload the drugs and place those arrested in pretrial detention.

The success of this type of operation is the result of collaboration between organizations specializing in criminal intelligence cooperation at the national, European, and international levels, such as CITCO or MAOC-N, and the various Spanish and French police and customs services, as well as the unwavering support of the Moroccan authorities, the statement concluded.

The suspect, Njeri Mary, 35, was apprehended by NACOC officials during routine checks at the arrival hall after disembarking from a South African Airways flight from Nairobi to Accra via Johannesburg.

A search of her luggage revealed packages of Cremora food that contained the concealed drugs. Preliminary questioning revealed that she had confirmed possession of the consignment in her luggage, and she was later arrested for further investigation.

The exhibits have been sent to the Ghana Standard Authority (GSA) for analysis and report, while the suspect is being held in prison pending further investigations and prosecution.

NACOC assures the public that it is committed to reducing the drug trafficking threat to the country.

The Commission wishes to use this medium to remind the general public that the possession and transportation of illicit drugs without lawful authority is illegal and punishable under sections 40 (1) and 41 (1) of Act 1019 of the Narcotics Control Commission Act 2020.