NDLEA Uncovers Major Drug Trafficking Ring as Brazilian National, Others Nabbed in Multi-State Operations
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have intensified Nigeria’s fight against transnational and domestic drug trafficking, arresting a 30-year-old Brazilian woman and several other suspects in coordinated operations across Abuja, Lagos, Kaduna, and multiple states, aimed at disrupting illicit drug supply chains and cutting off funding sources for criminal networks.
The most significant arrest occurred on Friday, January 23, 2026, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, where NDLEA officers intercepted Ms Ingrid Benevides, a Brazilian private security officer, upon her arrival from Doha aboard Qatar Airways flight QR1431.
She was found in possession of 30.09 kilograms of heroin concealed in factory-sealed coffee packs, with the consignment estimated to be worth over N3 billion.
According to a statement issued on Sunday by the agency’s spokesman, Femi Babafemi, the arrest followed intelligence-led surveillance, which prompted a detailed search of Benevides’ luggage.
Officers discovered 21 sealed packs of Brazilian coffee that, upon inspection, contained white substances later confirmed to be heroin.
“When the coffee bags were opened, rather than containing the beverage, what was found inside were white substances that later tested positive for heroin, weighing a total of 30.09 kilograms, making it the single largest heroin seizure at the Abuja airport.
During her preliminary interview, the suspect claimed she brought the white heroin consignment under the guise of coming to Nigeria for holidays,” the statement partly read.
In a related operation at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, NDLEA operatives on Tuesday, January 20, intercepted two passengers, Adediran Adedoyin and Afatakpa Ochuko, who were preparing to board a Turkish Airlines flight to Istanbul.
Babafemi said the suspects were found with 3,990 pills of tapentadol 250mg and tramadol 225mg hidden inside food items packed in their luggage.
“At the MMIA Ikeja, Lagos, NDLEA operatives on Tuesday, 20th January intercepted two passengers: Adediran Adedoyin and Afatakpa Ochuko who were heading to Istanbul, Turkey, aboard a Turkish Airlines flight with a total of 3,990 pills of tapentadol 250mg and tramadol 225mg concealed in food items packed in their bags,” he said.
Beyond the airports, the agency also recorded a major seizure along Nigeria’s waterways. Babafemi disclosed that NDLEA’s Marine Command, acting on credible intelligence, intercepted a wooden boat carrying 44 jumbo bags of Ghana Loud cannabis, weighing 1,848 kilograms, at Jakande Beach in Lekki, Lagos, in the early hours of Thursday, January 22.
“The shipment had barely arrived from Ghana when NDLEA officers acting on credible intelligence stormed the location around 1 am, recovered the consignment and the boat,” he said.
In Kaduna State, the agency arrested two suspects, Aminu Baba, 20, and Abdulrasheed Abubakar, 28, in connection with the interception of two bags containing 140 packets of explosives allegedly destined for Kano and Kaduna.
The bags were seized from a commercial bus along the Kaduna–Zaria highway, while the suspects were later apprehended in follow-up operations in both states.
Babafemi added that further intelligence-driven operations nationwide led to the arrest of multiple suspects and the seizure of various illicit substances, including tramadol, skunk, pentazocine injections, cannabis seeds, and codeine syrup, across Borno, Niger, Ekiti, Edo, Kano, Oyo, Benue, Lagos, Delta, and Ondo states.
The NDLEA said the series of arrests and seizures underscore its sustained strategy to dismantle drug trafficking networks, curb cross-border smuggling, and prevent illicit drugs from reaching criminal and terrorist groups.
While Nigeria continues to grapple with the challenges posed by drug trafficking, the agency insists that strengthened intelligence gathering and coordinated enforcement remain central to its national drug control efforts.
