The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 38-year-old South African woman, Ms. Will Jessica Ann, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA), Abuja, for attempting to smuggle 5.75 kilograms of heroin into Nigeria while allegedly using her three-year-old son as a cover to evade security screening.
The agency also announced the seizure of 4,143.5 kilograms of Canadian Loud, a potent strain of cannabis, valued at over N10.3 billion, at the Apapa Seaport in Lagos, alongside the arrest of an Okada rider who excreted 100 wraps of methamphetamine after arriving from Madagascar.
According to a statement issued on Sunday by the Director of Media and Advocacy, NDLEA, Femi Babafemi, the South African suspect was arrested on Monday, July 6, 2026, during the inward clearance of passengers aboard Qatar Airways flight QR1433 from Doha.
The statement said the suspect initially denied travelling with any checked luggage, but NDLEA operatives established that two suitcases containing 14 large blocks of heroin had baggage tags matching the claim tags attached to her passport.
She later admitted ownership of the bags, claiming she had forgotten she checked them in.
Investigations revealed that she travelled from Cambodia through Doha to Abuja and is believed to be a member of a transnational drug trafficking syndicate operating between Cambodia and South Africa alongside her husband or partner, identified as Jan Coenraad De Jager.
In a separate operation, NDLEA operatives at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, intercepted 48-year-old commercial motorcycle operator, Onyechere Daniel Chinadu, on June 28 after he arrived from Madagascar via Addis Ababa aboard an Ethiopian Airlines flight.
A search of his checked backpack led to the recovery of 87 wraps of methamphetamine concealed inside clothing. During interrogation, the suspect disclosed that he had worked as an Okada rider in the Oke-Afa area of Lagos for 15 years before a Uganda-based associate recruited him into drug trafficking.
He further confessed that he ingested additional pellets of methamphetamine in Uganda before travelling to Madagascar to deliver the consignment. However, he was denied entry by immigration authorities in Madagascar, prompting his sponsor, identified as Ozor Igo and based in Uganda, to reroute him to Lagos, where he was arrested.
Unable to state the exact number of pellets he had swallowed, the suspect was placed under observation. Between his arrest and July 1, he excreted 13 additional pellets, bringing the total seizure to 100 wraps of methamphetamine weighing 1.715 kilograms.
At the Apapa Seaport, NDLEA officers, in collaboration with the Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies, intercepted 8,287 nylon bags of Canadian Loud weighing 4,143.5 kilograms concealed in a container imported from Canada.
The agency said the shipment, valued at over N10.3 billion in street value, was uncovered during a joint examination on Friday, July 10, following weeks of intelligence-driven tracking by the Maritime Intelligence Unit in collaboration with the Apapa Strategic Command.
In another operation, NDLEA operatives attached to the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation (DOGI) foiled an attempt to export 2.5 kilograms of skunk concealed inside a gas compressor destined for Cyprus through a Lagos-based courier company.
Beyond enforcement, the agency said it sustained its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) campaign with sensitisation programmes in schools and communities across the country.
The awareness activities were held at Nnodo Secondary School, Abakaliki, Ebonyi State; Government Girls Secondary School, Sabon Gida, Sharada, Kano State; Royal Jesuit College, Agbado Ekiti; and Community Secondary School, Idofa, Ogun State.
The leadership of NDLEA Zone 14 Command also paid a WADA advocacy visit to the Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, at the Government House in Port Harcourt.
Commending officers of the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation, MMIA, NAIA, Maritime Intelligence Unit and Apapa Commands for the successful operations, NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), praised their efforts in reducing the supply of illicit drugs while sustaining public enlightenment campaigns against drug abuse.
He urged the officers to remain steadfast in the agency’s fight against drug trafficking and substance abuse across the country.
