Ugandan Woman on Prayer Visit to Nigeria Nabbed with ’87 Wraps of Cocaine’

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 34-year-old Ugandan woman for allegedly attempting to smuggle 1.15 kilogrammes of cocaine out of Nigeria. 

The consigment was reportedly concealed in her underwear.

The suspect, identified as Farida Nansubuga, was arrested on November 3 at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, while preparing to board a flight to Uganda.

In a statement on Sunday, Femi Babafemi, NDLEA spokesperson, said the woman was intercepted during a joint passenger screening exercise involving agency operatives and aviation security personnel at terminal 2 of the airport.

A search conducted on her led to the discovery of 87 wraps of cocaine, strapped round her pelvic region and concealed beneath two layers of underwear.

Babafemi said preliminary investigations revealed that Nansubuga arrived in Nigeria on October 29 with members of her church for a prayer session at the Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN), in the Ikotun-Egbe area of Lagos.

He said other members of her delegation had returned to Uganda after the religious gathering, but the suspect remained in Nigeria to collect the drug consignment for a friend identified as Joy, who lives in Uganda.

According to the agency, Nansubuga claimed that her contact in Nigeria arranged a vehicle to take her to a hotel on the morning of her departure, where a man handed her the cocaine and instructed her to conceal it beneath her clothing.

She reportedly expected to receive at least $1,000 after successfully delivering the drugs.

In a separate operation at the Lagos airport, NDLEA operatives intercepted 750,000 tablets of Tapentadol 250mg, weighing 526kg and valued at N900 million.

The consignment, which arrived from Ahmedabad, India, aboard an Ethiopian Airlines flight on November 3, was declared as Paracetamol 500mg.

The agency said officers placed the shipment under surveillance after becoming suspicious of its declaration.

A joint examination with the Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies on November 6 revealed that 10 of the 11 cartons contained the opioid tablets, while the remaining carton held paracetamol.

The agency also intercepted 32 parcels of loud, a cannabis strain, weighing 16.15kg and concealed inside two wooden sofas in a consolidated cargo from Houston, United States.

The consignment arrived aboard a Turkish Airlines flight on November 4. A freight agent, Ibrahim Abdulwaheed Adewale, was arrested while attempting to clear it.

A follow-up operation on November 6 led to the arrest of Adeoye Sarafa Ojo, a 34-year-old caterer from Ibadan, who allegedly came to collect the package.

The NDLEA also reported intercepting illicit drugs destined for the United Kingdom and Australia, including 46 blocks of cannabis weighing 22.2kg, 296 tablets of Swinol and several shipments of tramadol concealed in vitamin C containers and female headwear.

In other operations across the country, the agency recovered large quantities of cannabis, opioids and other illicit substances in Lagos, Ondo, Ekiti, Edo, Taraba, Enugu and Delta states.