NDLEA Busts Drug Network As South African Woman, US-Based Grandma Arrested

By Bukar BOLORI

A South African woman allegedly recruited to smuggle 36.65 kilogrammes of cocaine out of Nigeria, a United States-based Nigerian grandmother accused of bringing in 9.45 kilogrammes of high-grade cannabis, and a Lagos car dealer suspected of facilitating the cocaine courier’s movements have been arrested in separate operations by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).

The arrests, involving international drug consignments moving through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, have exposed fresh leads in investigations into suspected cross-border trafficking networks, as the agency intensifies operations against drug syndicates and their local collaborators.

The South African suspect, identified as 34-year-old Qhina Beauty, allegedly agreed to transport the cocaine for a reward of R20,000, while the 62-year-old Nigerian-American grandmother, Anetor Gloria Ubong, reportedly told investigators that a box containing the cannabis was given to her in the United States for delivery to her daughter’s fiancé in Nigeria.

The arrests formed part of a nationwide crackdown that also uncovered large consignments of pharmaceutical opioids, cannabis and other illicit substances in Lagos, Delta, Kano, Bauchi, Niger, Edo, Ondo, Taraba and Oyo states.

The latest development comes against the backdrop of previous cases involving South African nationals arrested for drug trafficking in Nigeria, including a woman sentenced to a total of 40 years’ imprisonment in September for importing 5.75 kilogrammes of heroin into the country.

According to a statement by the spokesman of the anti-narcotics agency, Femi Babafemi, Qhina was arrested on October 7 by NDLEA operatives at the Lagos airport as she prepared to board a Qatar Airways flight to South Africa through Doha.

He said a search of her two travelling bags uncovered 30 blocks of cocaine weighing 36.65 kilogrammes, wrapped in cellophane tape, mixed with dried pepper and concealed in seven separate parcels.

She was reported to have during interrogation told investigators that she had arrived in Nigeria on September 30 specifically to collect the consignment. She allegedly identified another South African woman as her recruiter and said she had been promised R20,000 upon successful delivery.

She also reportedly identified two other alleged members of the network, one based in the United States and the other a Lagos-based car dealer.

Babafemi said following further investigation and surveillance, NDLEA operatives arrested the suspected local accomplice, 46-year-old Uchenna Umunnakwe, at Apple Junction, Ago Palace Way, Lagos, on October 14.

He said Umunnakwe admitted receiving Qhina at the airport, arranging her accommodation at Santiago Hotel in Amuwo-Odofin and subsequently moving her to Cynarisso Hotel near the airport ahead of her departure.

The arrest of the car dealer has widened the investigation beyond the interception of the cocaine consignment to the alleged logistics supporting the courier’s movements within Lagos.

In another airport operation, NDLEA officers arrested Anetor Ubong on October 21 after she arrived from Houston, Texas, aboard a United Airlines flight.

The 62-year-old realtor, who is based in Richmond, Texas, and holds Nigerian and United States passports, was found with 18 parcels of loud weighing 9.45 kilogrammes in her two checked-in boxes.

The substance, a high-potency form of cannabis, was concealed with gift-wrapping paper inside a box.

Ubong reportedly told investigators that her daughter and the daughter’s future brother-in-law had delivered the box to her home in the United States for onward delivery in Nigeria to her daughter’s fiancé, identified as Jibola.

The agency’s investigation into the two airport interceptions comes amid other high-profile cases involving foreign drug couriers.

In September, a Federal High Court in Abuja sentenced South African national Will Jessica Ann to a total of 40 years’ imprisonment for importing 5.75 kilogrammes of heroin into Nigeria.

Ann was arrested at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, on July 6, after arriving from Doha aboard a Qatar Airways flight. NDLEA operatives reportedly discovered 14 blocks of heroin in her luggage.

The agency said further investigations linked her to an alleged international trafficking network involving her husband, Jan Coenraad De Jager, who was arrested in Johannesburg on July 27 over an alleged attempt to traffic 3.2 kilogrammes of illicit drugs to Hong Kong.

Justice Obiora Egwuatu convicted Ann after she pleaded guilty to charges relating to importing heroin and conspiracy to import the substance. The sentences were ordered to run concurrently.

The earlier case underlines the potential international reach of drug trafficking networks that use couriers to move consignments between continents, although there is no established evidence linking Ann’s case to the latest investigation involving Qhina.

Beyond the airport seizures, NDLEA operatives recorded substantial recoveries across the country, including thousands of opioid tablets, codeine syrup, cannabis consignments and cultivated cannabis farms.

In Lagos, a special operations unit arrested 41-year-old Eletu Rasheedat in the Eti-Osa area on October 23, recovering 5,820 pills of diazepam, 780 tramadol tablets, 3.7 kilogrammes of skunk and 230.25 litres of skuchies.

In Delta State, operatives arrested 51-year-old Peter Ugochukwu in Warri with a large cache of pharmaceutical opioids.

The agency listed the seizures as 29,350 tramadol capsules, 6,620 tablets of tramadol 200mg, 4,116 bottles of codeine syrup, 11,340 Rohypnol tablets, 3,500 diazepam tablets, 300 ampoules of pentazocine injection and 200 ampoules of diazepam injection.

Quantities of tramadol 225mg, Molly and Cocodamol were also recovered. The suspect and a white Hummer bus were transferred from the Nigeria Police Force in Delta State to the NDLEA.

In a separate operation at Enerhen Junction, Warri, operatives arrested 46-year-old Helen Bakporo Samson, a physically challenged woman, on October 19 with six kilogrammes of skunk.

In Oyo State, officers arrested 41-year-old Fajana Dada Oluwaseyi in the Adamasingba area of Ibadan on October 19. The agency said he had earlier escaped arrest after operatives seized 197.8 kilogrammes of cannabis from his residence on September 16.

A raid in the Gerawa area of Kano State on October 22 led to the arrest of 30-year-old Murtala Lawan and the seizure of 159 blocks of cannabis weighing 97.2 kilogrammes.

In Taraba State, operatives at the Lankaviri checkpoint in Yorro Local Government Area intercepted 39-year-old Raiyanu Misa on October 23 with 95 blocks of compressed cannabis weighing 60.175 kilogrammes.

On the same day, the agency received another suspect from the police following his arrest at Dakka village in Bali Local Government Area, where 112 blocks of compressed cannabis weighing 81.49 kilogrammes were recovered.

In Niger State, NDLEA officers arrested 26-year-old Emmanuel Ekene on October 19 along the Sabo-Kainji road in Borgu Local Government Area, recovering 64,000 pills of opioids, including tramadol and diazepam.

In Bauchi State, operatives arrested 45-year-old Jamilu Mustapha, also known as Last Card, at Nasaru town in Ningi Local Government Area on October 21. They seized 379 kilogrammes of cannabis packed in seven large sacks.

The agency also recorded significant seizures from cannabis farms in Ondo and Edo states.

Babafemi said acting on intelligence, operatives raided a farm at Board-Ala in Akure South Local Government Area of Ondo State on October 20, recovering 56 bags of abandoned cannabis weighing 583 kilogrammes.

In Edo State, officers destroyed two cannabis farms in Ugbada Forest, Uzebba, Owan West Local Government Area, on October 18. The farms had an estimated yield of 2,023.14 kilogrammes.

During the operation, operatives destroyed 450 kilogrammes of processed cannabis by burning and took another 97 kilogrammes as exhibits. In a related operation at Ewe community in Owan West, they arrested 42-year-old Mary Edokhai with 35 kilogrammes of the substance.

The agency said its enforcement operations were complemented by public sensitisation campaigns under its War Against Drug Abuse initiative, with lectures delivered to students and staff of schools in Oyo, Niger, Ogun, Kano, Enugu, Anambra and Osun states, among other locations.

NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig.-Gen. Buba Marwa (retd.), commended officers of the Lagos airport and the Kano, Lagos, Bauchi, Niger, Edo, Ondo, Taraba, Oyo and Delta commands for what he described as vigilance, professionalism and intelligence-driven operations.

He urged personnel nationwide to sustain the momentum in the fight against drug trafficking and substance abuse.