NDLEA Detains Woman Heading to Iran for Smuggling Cocaine Hidden in Her Body

On Sunday, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) reported that its agents successfully foiled an attempt by a woman to transport significant amounts of cocaine to Iran through the Port Harcourt International Airport in Rivers State.

In a statement shared with Channels Television by NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi, it was revealed that the cocaine was concealed in various body parts, including the suspect's private area, abdomen, and within a false bottom of her handbag. The suspect, identified as Ihensekhien Miracle Obehi, was intercepted in the departure hall of the Port Harcourt airport on May 3, 2025, while preparing to board a Qatar Airways flight to Iran via Doha, following reliable intelligence. Babafemi explained that during a thorough search, authorities discovered three packages of cocaine inserted in her private area, two larger parcels hidden within her handbag, and 67 pellets of the drug which she had ingested. Consequently, she was placed under observation for excretion, and after several days, she expelled the 67 wraps. Obehi claimed that she initially intended to swallow 70 pellets; however, after ingesting 67, she was unable to swallow the remaining three and chose to hide them instead.

The total weight of the drugs concealed in various parts of her body was 2.523 kilograms, according to the agency. In another operation, on May 9, NDLEA officials at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport in Ikeja, Lagos, apprehended 22-year-old British national Campell Kaizra Kofi Johannes Slifer. He was arriving from Thailand via Doha on a Qatar Airways flight with two suitcases containing 35 parcels of a potent cannabis strain known as Loud, weighing a total of 37.60 kg. Campell, who admitted to two prior convictions in the UK for drug trafficking and robbery, revealed he was recruited in London to collect the illegal cargo in Thailand and transport it to Nigeria. Additionally, on May 7 in Niger State, NDLEA agents acting on intelligence intercepted a fuel truck marked ABJ 693 XU along the Suleja-Kaduna road, along with three other vehicles that were carrying 246 bags of skunk, a type of cannabis, with an overall weight of 3,047 kilograms.

Four individuals were arrested during the operation: Christopher Onyema, 47; Benedict Etineruba Young, 54; Chukwudi Ujue Jerry, 30; and Mohammed Abdullahi Danasabe. Also recovered were a Honda Odyssey bus marked YAB 667 CZ, a Gulf bus with registration number GWA 125 TQ, and another Honda Odyssey bus marked ABJ 230 CN.