‎How China-Bound Businesswoman was Nabbed With 7.5kg Cocaine, ₦12.4bn Cannabis at Lagos Airport by NDLEA

A 38-year-old businesswoman, Iwebema Ogechi Peace, has been arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, while attempting to board a Qatar Airways flight to Beijing with 7.5 kilograms of cocaine concealed in the false bottom of her suitcase.
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‎According to the NDLEA, the suspect was intercepted at the departure hall of Terminal 2 following credible intelligence. A thorough search of her luggage led to the discovery of four parcels of cocaine carefully hidden inside a specially constructed false compartment.
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‎During interrogation, the suspect reportedly told investigators that she regularly travelled to China to purchase goods for resale in Nigeria.
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‎In a separate operation, NDLEA operatives intercepted a 40-foot container carrying 4,959 kilograms of Canadian Loud, a high-grade strain of cannabis, with an estimated street value of ₦12.397 billion, at the Apapa Port.
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‎The agency said the seizure followed more than four weeks of intelligence-driven surveillance. The container was examined jointly by NDLEA officers, the Nigeria Customs Service, other security agencies and port stakeholders.
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‎Investigations revealed that the shipment, which also contained a Ford and a Nissan vehicle, had been placed under surveillance after leaving Toronto on April 25. It reportedly transited through Montreal and Morocco before arriving in Lagos, where it was intercepted.
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‎The NDLEA also announced the dismantling of a syndicate allegedly involved in planting illicit drugs in the luggage of unsuspecting travellers at motor parks. Several suspects were arrested during coordinated operations in Abuja and Anambra.
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‎In related operations across the country, NDLEA operatives recovered 209.5 kilograms of Scottish Loud in Lagos, intercepted 558,900 pills of tramadol concealed in a truck arriving from Togo, and arrested several suspects linked to drug trafficking.
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‎NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Mohamed Buba Marwa, commended the officers involved in the successful operations and urged them to sustain the agency’s offensive against illicit drug trafficking and substance abuse across Nigeria.