A Federal High Court in Lagos has convicted 11 Indian sailors and their merchant vessel, MV Aruna Hulya, over the importation of 31.5 kilograms of cocaine into Nigeria, imposing financial penalties and restitution totalling approximately $6 million.
According to an official signed statement by the Director of Media and Advocacy of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Femi Babafemi, the convictions came barely six months after the vessel and its crew were arrested for smuggling cocaine from the Marshall Islands through the Apapa Seaport in Lagos.
The NDLEA had taken the Indian crew members and the vessel into custody following the discovery of 31.5 kilograms of cocaine concealed in Hatch 3 of the ship at the GDNL Terminal, Apapa Port, on January 2, 2026.
The Master of the vessel, Sharma Shashi Bhushan, alongside 10 other crew members, Bharati Manoj Kumar, Nevage Sandesh Suresh, Pandey Prashant, Nuttu Anand, Akash Babu, Nilesh Mukuno Bhalerad, Melethil Insaf Rahman, Barla Chantanya Krishna, Prabhasukhan Singu and Jai Parkash were subsequently arraigned before Justice Joseph Chukwujekwu Aneke of the Federal High Court, Lagos, on a two-count charge in suit number FHC/L/56C/2026.
Delivering judgment on Thursday, June 11, 2026, Justice Aneke adopted plea bargain terms agreed upon by the prosecution and defence, convicting all 12 defendants under Section 25 of the NDLEA Act.
The court sentenced each defendant to pay a fine of ₦100,000, being the statutory penalty prescribed under the Act. In addition, the vessel, MV Aruna Hulya, was ordered to pay restitution of $5.3 million to the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
The court also directed three principal officers of the vessel Sharma Shashi Bhushan, Nilesh Mukuno Bhalerad and Melethil Insaf Rahman to pay restitution of $100,000 each to the Federal Government, while the remaining crew members were ordered to pay $50,000 each.
Reacting to the judgment, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), described the conviction as a strong warning to international drug trafficking syndicates.
He said the judgment sends a clear message that Nigeria is no longer a safe transit route for cocaine and other illicit substances.
According to Marwa, the ruling marks the third recent conviction involving foreign nationals and vessels linked to drug trafficking, attributing the successes to intelligence-driven operations by NDLEA officers across the country’s ports of entry.
He warned that anyone seeking to use Nigeria’s airspace, land borders or territorial waters for narcotics trafficking would face the full consequences of the law.
The NDLEA Chairman commended officers and personnel of the Agency’s Apapa Strategic Command for their vigilance in uncovering the concealed cocaine consignment aboard the vessel. He also praised the Directorate of Prosecution and Legal Services for its role in securing the convictions.
Marwa reaffirmed the Agency’s commitment to sustaining pressure on drug trafficking networks and strengthening Nigeria’s fight against illicit drug trade.
