Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency have arrested a 38 year old South African woman, Will Jessica Ann, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, for allegedly attempting to smuggle 5.75 kilogrammes of heroin into Nigeria by using her three year old son as cover to evade security checks.
The agency said the suspect was arrested on Monday, July 6, during the inward clearance of passengers aboard a Qatar Airways flight from Doha after officers discovered 14 large blocks of heroin concealed in her luggage.
According to the NDLEA, the suspect initially denied travelling with any checked in luggage but later admitted ownership of the bags after investigators matched the baggage tags with the claim tags attached to her passport.
The agency disclosed that preliminary intelligence linked the suspect to a transnational drug trafficking network allegedly operated with her husband and partner, Jan Coenraad De Jager, from Cambodia along the Cambodian and South African drug trafficking route.
In a related operation, NDLEA operatives at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, arrested a 48 year old commercial motorcyclist, Onyechere Daniel Chinadu, after intercepting 87 wraps of methamphetamine hidden in his backpack following his arrival from Madagascar via Addis Ababa.
The suspect later excreted 13 additional pellets after being placed under observation for three days, bringing the total seizure to 100 wraps of methamphetamine weighing 1.715 kilogrammes.
The anti narcotics agency also announced the seizure of 4,143.5 kilogrammes of Canadian Loud, a potent strain of cannabis, valued at over N10.3 billion, during a joint examination of a container imported from Canada at the Apapa Seaport in Lagos. The operation was carried out alongside the Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies.
NDLEA further said its officers thwarted an attempt to export 2.5 kilogrammes of skunk concealed inside a gas compressor destined for Cyprus through a Lagos courier company.
The agency added that its commands nationwide sustained their War Against Drug Abuse campaign with sensitisation programmes in schools, communities and workplaces across Ebonyi, Kano, Ekiti, Ogun and Rivers states.
Commending the officers involved in the operations, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), said the successes reflected the agency’s commitment to reducing drug supply and expanding preventive education.
Marwa said, “I commend the officers and men of DOGI, MMIA, NAIA, MIU and Apapa Commands for balancing their drug supply reduction efforts with WADA sensitisation activities.”
He charged operatives across the country “not to rest on their past laurels” in the fight against illicit drug trafficking.
