The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intercepted an audacious drug smuggling attempt at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos, arresting a 67-year-old Nigerian-British grandmother who concealed a massive stash of illicit narcotics inside fabricated food items.
The suspect, identified as Mrs. Mary Barek, who resides in the United Kingdom where she works professionally as a caregiver, was apprehended by vigilant airport operatives within the departure hall of Terminal 2.
Authorities intercepted her while she was attempting to board a Virgin Atlantic flight bound for London. A methodical, forensic physical search of her checked luggage exposed 31 large, compressed wraps of high-grade cocaine meticulously packaged and colored to perfectly resemble hands of fresh plantain, weighing a gross total of 13 kilograms.
“A thorough search of her bags resulted in the discovery of 31 big wraps of cocaine, which were packaged to appear like hands of plantain, weighing a total of 13 kilograms. In her statement, the elderly woman admitted full ownership of the recovered cocaine exhibits,” confirmed NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi.
Expanding its tactical enforcement web, the anti-narcotic agency also announced the dramatic arrest of Nwabueze Felix Onyeka, a 45-year-old PhD student at the University of Putra Malaysia. Onyeka was tracked down and apprehended by intelligence operatives at his rural hideout in Aziora, Ozubulu, within the Ekwusigo Local Government Area of Anambra State.
Investigators unmasked the academic researcher as the suspected operational mastermind behind a transnational drug trafficking syndicate that previously attempted to export 5.80 kilograms of cocaine cleverly embedded within the structural walls of cardboard cartons carrying Orijin Bitters herbal drinks destined for Kuala Lumpur.
Furthermore, separate NDLEA sting operations yielded major narcotic seizures across Taraba, Kaduna, Ebonyi, Plateau, and Gombe states, net-arresting several senior citizens and confiscating over 43,000 hidden Tramadol capsules alongside 556 kilograms of bricked cannabis sativa.
#NDLEA #DrugTrafficking #MaryBarek #MurtalaMuhammedAirport #BubaMarwa #CocaineSeizure #AnambraNews #LagosAirport
The suspect, identified as Mrs. Mary Barek, who resides in the United Kingdom where she works professionally as a caregiver, was apprehended by vigilant airport operatives within the departure hall of Terminal 2.
Authorities intercepted her while she was attempting to board a Virgin Atlantic flight bound for London. A methodical, forensic physical search of her checked luggage exposed 31 large, compressed wraps of high-grade cocaine meticulously packaged and colored to perfectly resemble hands of fresh plantain, weighing a gross total of 13 kilograms.
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“A thorough search of her bags resulted in the discovery of 31 big wraps of cocaine, which were packaged to appear like hands of plantain, weighing a total of 13 kilograms. In her statement, the elderly woman admitted full ownership of the recovered cocaine exhibits,” confirmed NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi.
Expanding its tactical enforcement web, the anti-narcotic agency also announced the dramatic arrest of Nwabueze Felix Onyeka, a 45-year-old PhD student at the University of Putra Malaysia. Onyeka was tracked down and apprehended by intelligence operatives at his rural hideout in Aziora, Ozubulu, within the Ekwusigo Local Government Area of Anambra State.
Investigators unmasked the academic researcher as the suspected operational mastermind behind a transnational drug trafficking syndicate that previously attempted to export 5.80 kilograms of cocaine cleverly embedded within the structural walls of cardboard cartons carrying Orijin Bitters herbal drinks destined for Kuala Lumpur.
Furthermore, separate NDLEA sting operations yielded major narcotic seizures across Taraba, Kaduna, Ebonyi, Plateau, and Gombe states, net-arresting several senior citizens and confiscating over 43,000 hidden Tramadol capsules alongside 556 kilograms of bricked cannabis sativa.
#NDLEA #DrugTrafficking #MaryBarek #MurtalaMuhammedAirport #BubaMarwa #CocaineSeizure #AnambraNews #LagosAirport
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