…arrests Brazilian woman with 30kg heroin in coffee packs at Abuja airport
…nets village head, septuagenarian grandpa, multiple traffickers, and seizes tons of illicit drugs across 14 states and the FCT
By Nkechi Eze
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have recorded a string of high-impact operational successes across the country, intercepting multi-billion-naira narcotics consignments, disrupting dangerous trafficking routes, seizing explosives bound for northern states, and arresting a wide range of suspects including an elderly village head, a 72-year-old grandfather, and an international drug courier at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA), Abuja.
In one of the most significant breakthroughs, a 30-year-old Brazilian national, Ms Ingrid Rosa Benevides, was arrested on Friday, 23 January 2026, at the Abuja airport for attempting to smuggle into Nigeria a massive 30.09 kilograms of white heroin concealed in factory-sealed coffee packs. The suspect, who works as a private security officer in Brazil, arrived in Nigeria aboard Qatar Airways flight QR1431 and was arrested based on processed intelligence.
A search of her two checked-in bags led to the discovery of 21 factory-sealed packets of Brazilian coffee. However, when the packets were opened, operatives found that instead of coffee, they contained white substances which subsequently tested positive for heroin. The total weight of the heroin was 30.09 kilograms, with an estimated street value exceeding ₦3 billion, making it the single largest heroin seizure ever recorded at the Abuja airport. During her preliminary interview, Benevides claimed she brought the illicit consignment under the guise of coming to Nigeria for holidays.
At the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos, NDLEA operatives on Tuesday, 20 January intercepted two outbound passengers, Adediran Adedoyin and Afatakpa Ochuko, who were travelling to Istanbul, Turkey, aboard a Turkish Airlines flight. A thorough search of their luggage revealed a total of 3,990 pills of tapentadol 250mg and tramaking 225mg concealed inside food items packed in their bags.
In another major maritime operation, operatives of the NDLEA Marine Command in the early hours of Thursday, 22 January intercepted a wooden boat at Jakande Beach, Lekki, Lagos, loaded with 44 jumbo bags of Ghana Loud, a potent strain of cannabis weighing 1,848 kilograms. The consignment had just arrived from Ghana when NDLEA officers, acting on credible intelligence, stormed the area around 1 a.m., recovered the drugs and seized the boat used for transportation.
The agency also thwarted the movement of explosives intended for Kano and Kaduna States. Two suspects, Aminu Ali Baba, 20, and Abdulrasheed Abubakar, 28, were arrested on Friday, 23 January in connection with the seizure of two bags containing 140 packets of explosives. The suspicious bags were initially intercepted in a commercial bus along the Kaduna–Zaria highway in Zaria. Swift follow-up operations led to the arrest of Aminu Ali Baba at Karota Park, Kano, and Abdulrasheed Abubakar at Mando Park, Kaduna.
Still in Kaduna State, an intelligence-led raid carried out at Kwangila in Zaria Local Government Area on Thursday, 22 January resulted in the arrest of Fatima Ibrahim, 42, and Adejimoh Ismaila, 44, with 120 kilograms of skunk recovered from them.
As part of sustained efforts to disrupt the supply chain of illicit drugs to terrorist groups and criminal networks, NDLEA operatives in Borno State on Wednesday, 21 January intercepted 179,590 pills of tramadol and diazepam concealed inside sacks of charcoal and animal feeds in a public transport vehicle coming from Potiskum, Yobe State. A follow-up operation at Bulabulin, Maiduguri, led to the arrest of the owner of the consignment, Rabiu Imam, 32.
In Niger State, a female suspect, Mrs Eze Cynthia Chioma, was arrested on Friday, 23 January in Mokwa during a follow-up operation linked to the seizure of her consignment of 78,500 pills of tramadol earlier the same day at Bode Saadu, Kwara State. The drugs were intercepted in a truck coming from Lagos. Investigations revealed that her husband, who was arrested last year for a similar drug trafficking offence, is currently remanded in prison and facing trial.
Ekiti State recorded the arrest of a 72-year-old suspect, Afolalu Joseph, at his residence located at 15 Aramoko Road, Mushin, Ilawe-Ekiti, alongside Abu Bunmi, also known as “Go Slow,” 45, who was apprehended at New Jerusalem area, Erijinyan Road, Ilawe-Ekiti, on Saturday, 24 January. A total of 62 kilograms of skunk were recovered from the two suspects.
In Edo State, a village head, Chief James Abamu, and another suspect, Aboy Egah Abamu, were taken into custody by the NDLEA following their arrest and prompt handover by troops of the Nigerian Army 4 Brigade, Benin City. The suspects were apprehended after a raid operation at Lagos Camp, Ilushi, in Esan South East Local Government Area, where 681 kilograms of skunk and 181 kilograms of cannabis seeds were recovered from them on Wednesday, 21 January.
In Kano State, the trio of Abba Hassan, Anas Moh’d Auwal and Sadik Ismail were arrested on Tuesday, 20 January in the Sabon Gari area with 1,000 ampoules of pentazocine injection. Meanwhile, in Oyo State, NDLEA operatives on Thursday, 22 January arrested Olajumoke Ridwan and Baruwa Ibukun at Paris Lounge, Ring Road, Ibadan, with 181.5 litres of skuchies, a dangerous cocktail of skunk and other illicit substances.
Benue State also witnessed a major seizure as a female suspect, Janet Iornongu, was arrested at Yes Ikyuan village, Guma Local Government Area, with 210 kilograms of skunk. Similarly, 254.5 kilograms of the same psychoactive substance was seized from Anita Job along Abaji–Toto Road in the Federal Capital Territory on Thursday, 22 January.
In Lagos, NDLEA operatives recovered 39,800 pills of tramadol 225mg from two suspects, Hamisu Misbahu and Chima Obi, at Alaba Rago, Mile 2 area, on Monday, 19 January. In Delta State, no fewer than 30,003 pills of tramadol, molly and other opioids, as well as 20 litres of codeine syrup, were seized from Chinyecherem Cyprian Ugwu along Sapele Road, Warri, on Thursday, 22 January.
In Ondo State, operatives arrested Kayode Obameye, 57, at Mobil Roundabout, Akure, on Friday, 23 January, with 1,500 kilograms of skunk recovered from him.
Beyond enforcement, NDLEA officers across commands and formations sustained the War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) advocacy campaign nationwide. Sensitisation and enlightenment lectures were delivered to students and staff of Government Science Secondary School, Jalingo, Taraba State; Beloved Montessori Group of Schools, Ede, Osun State; Owerri City Junior Secondary School, Owerri, Imo State; Government Day Secondary School, Otukpo, Benue State; and Darawa Primary School, Dutsinma, Katsina State, among others.
While commending the officers and men of the NAIA, MMIA, Marine, Borno, Jigawa, Kwara, Kaduna, Ekiti, Edo, Kano, Delta, Oyo, FCT, Benue, Lagos and Ondo Commands for the arrests, seizures and operational dexterity, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), urged them to sustain the current tempo. He charged personnel across the country to maintain the highest standards of professionalism and commitment in both drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction efforts, as the Agency intensifies its nationwide offensive against drug trafficking and abuse.
