The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 30-year-old Brazilian national, Ms. Ingrid Rosa Benevides, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA), Abuja, for attempting to smuggle heroin worth over ₦3 billion into Nigeria.
In a statement on Sunday, the Director of Media and Advocacy of the Agency, Mr. Femi Babafemi, said the suspect was apprehended on Friday, January 23, 2026, upon her arrival aboard a Qatar Airways flight QR1431 from Brazil, following processed intelligence.
Babafemi disclosed that a search of Benevides’ two checked-in bags led to the discovery of 21 factory-sealed packets of Brazilian coffee. Further examination revealed that the coffee packs concealed white substances which tested positive for heroin, weighing a total of 30.09 kilograms. The seizure represents the single largest heroin interception at the Abuja airport.
During preliminary interrogation, the suspect, who claimed to be a private security officer in Brazil, said she brought the illicit drugs under the guise of visiting Nigeria for a holiday.
In a related development, NDLEA operatives at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos, on Tuesday, January 20, intercepted two passengers, Adediran Adedoyin and Afatakpa Ochuko, en route to Istanbul, Turkey. The duo were found with 3,990 pills of tapentadol 250mg and tramaking 225mg concealed inside food items packed in their luggage.
Meanwhile, operatives of the Agency’s Marine Command, acting on credible intelligence, intercepted a wooden boat loaded with 44 jumbo bags of Ghana Loud cannabis weighing 1,848 kilograms at Jakande Beach, Lekki, Lagos, in the early hours of Thursday, January 22. The consignment had just arrived from Ghana when NDLEA officers stormed the location around 1:00 a.m. and recovered the drugs alongside the boat.
In Kaduna State, two suspects, Aminu Ali Baba, 20, and Abdulrasheed Abubakar, 28, were arrested on Friday, January 23, in connection with the seizure of two bags containing 140 packets of explosives heading to Kano and Kaduna. The explosives were intercepted in a commercial bus along the Kaduna–Zaria highway. Follow-up operations led to the arrest of the suspects at Karota Park, Kano, and Mando Park, Kaduna, respectively. An intelligence-led raid at Kwangila, Zaria LGA, also resulted in the arrest of Fatima Ibrahim, 42, and Adejimoh Ismaila, 44, with 120 kilograms of skunk recovered.
As part of efforts to disrupt drug supply chains linked to terror groups, NDLEA operatives in Borno State on Wednesday, January 21, intercepted 179,590 pills of tramadol and diazepam concealed in sacks of charcoal and animal feed in a commercial vehicle from Potiskum, Yobe State. A follow-up operation in Bulabulin, Maiduguri, led to the arrest of the owner of the drugs, Rabiu Imam, 32.
In Niger and Kwara states, a female suspect, Mrs. Eze Cynthia Chioma, was arrested in Mokwa following the seizure of 78,500 tramadol pills earlier intercepted in a truck at Bode Saadu, Kwara State. Her husband is currently remanded in prison over a similar offence.
In Ekiti State, NDLEA operatives arrested a 72-year-old man, Afolalu Joseph, alongside Abu Bunmi, also known as “Go Slow,” for illicit drug dealing. A total of 62 kilograms of skunk was recovered from them. Similarly, a village head in Edo State, Chief James Abamu, and another suspect were arrested after soldiers of the Nigerian Army 4 Brigade raided a drug camp in Ilushi, Esan South East LGA, where 681kg of skunk and 181kg of cannabis seeds were recovered.
Further arrests were recorded in Kano, Oyo, Benue, Lagos, Delta, Ondo, and the Federal Capital Territory, with seizures including tramadol pills, pentazocine injections, skuchies, cannabis, codeine syrup, and other illicit substances running into several tons.
Across the country, NDLEA officers also sustained their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation campaigns in schools, worship centres, workplaces, and communities nationwide.
Commending the officers and men of the various commands involved, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), urged them to maintain the current standard of professionalism in both drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction efforts.
