THISDAY

NDLEA Arrests Woman with 100 Wraps of Cocaine

- Michael Olugbode in Abuja

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcemen­t Agency (NDLEA), have arrested a Nigerian woman based in Brazil, Mrs. Anita Ugochinyer­e Ogbonna, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Internatio­nal Airport, NAIA, Abuja, with 100 pellets of cocaine concealed in her private part and handbag.

The mother of three was arrested on Friday night on arrival in Abuja via Qatar Air from Sao Paulo, Brazil through Doha. Upon a proper search, 12 wraps of cocaine inserted in her private part were extracted while another 88 pellets stuffed in socks were discovered hidden in her handbag.

During interrogat­ion, Mrs. Ogbonna who is a mother of three children, all resident in Brazil, claimed she lost her husband three years ago. She confessed she decided to traffick the illicit drug to raise money for the burial of her father scheduled for July 22, 2021 in Imo State.

She said one Emeka, alias KC also based in Brazil gave her the drug to deliver in Nigeria for a fee of $3,000. She said she pushed the wraps of cocaine into her private part after her attempts to swallow the pellets failed.

The suspect, who owns a shop where she sells African foodstuffs in Brazil further claimed she had to drop her three young children with a Kenyan lady who is her neighbour in Brazil before she embarked on the quick-moneyjourn­ey.

In a related developmen­t, narcotic officers attached to a courier company in Lagos have intercepte­d 500grammes of ketamine concealed in the walls of a wooden box filled with bitter kola that originated from Douala, Cameroon and heading to the United States of America, while another 500grammes of methamphet­amine hidden in automobile parts going to Australia were also seized at the firm.

Meanwhile, over 410 kilogramme­s of assorted illicit drugs have been intercepte­d and seized by NDLEA operatives in Plateau and Kwara states. A commercial bus with registrati­on number EKY 184 CQ Lagos was intercepte­d in Plateau with Diazepam weighing 39kg; Exol-5 tablets weighing 35kg and 1.7kg of Flumtrazep­am tablets discovered in the vehicle.

A follow-up operation led to the arrest of a drug dealer, Livinus Nnadi at Bauchi motor park on June 26, 2021 while on the same day, a blue Sharon minibus with registrati­on number FKG 539 GR, going to Bauchi from Jos was also intercepte­d and 7.9kg of pentazocin­e injection recovered from it.

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