BY FRONTLINE REPORTERS

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a 34-year-old Ugandan woman, Farida Nansubuga, for allegedly attempting to smuggle 1.15 kilogrammes of cocaine from Nigeria to Uganda.

Nansubuga was arrested on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos, while preparing to board a flight to Uganda. According to the agency, 87 wraps of cocaine were recovered from her pelvic region, where they had been strapped beneath two layers of underwear.

In a statement issued on Sunday by its Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, the NDLEA said the suspect arrived in Nigeria on October 29, 2026, alongside members of her church for a prayer session at the Synagogue Church of All Nations in the Ikotun-Egbe area of Lagos State.

The agency disclosed that while other members of the delegation returned to Uganda after the religious gathering, Nansubuga allegedly remained behind to collect the cocaine on behalf of a friend identified as Joy, who resides in Uganda. She was intercepted during a joint passenger screening exercise involving NDLEA operatives and aviation security personnel at Terminal 2 of the airport.

Preliminary investigations reportedly revealed that a contact in Nigeria arranged a vehicle to convey her to a hotel on the morning of her scheduled departure. At the hotel, an unidentified man allegedly handed over the consignment and instructed her to conceal it beneath her clothing to evade airport security checks.

The suspect reportedly told investigators that although no specific payment had been agreed upon, she expected to receive at least $1,000 upon successfully delivering the drugs in Uganda.

Reacting to the arrest, NDLEA Chairman, Brig.-Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), described the incident as a disturbing example of how drug cartels exploit religious activities and international travel to recruit couriers for illicit drug trafficking. He commended the officers involved and urged personnel across the agency’s commands to sustain their efforts against drug trafficking and substance abuse.

In a related operation at the Lagos airport, NDLEA operatives intercepted 750,000 tablets of Tapentadol 250mg, weighing 526 kilogrammes and valued at approximately ₦900 million. The consignment, which arrived from Ahmedabad, India, aboard an Ethiopian Airlines flight on November 3, was allegedly misdeclared as Paracetamol 500mg tablets.

The agency also intercepted 32 parcels of cannabis, popularly known as Loud, weighing 16.15 kilogrammes and concealed inside two wooden sofas in a cargo shipment from Houston, United States. In another operation, 600 tablets of Tramadol 225mg were recovered from female headwear in a shipment destined for the United Kingdom.

Additionally, operatives recovered 46 blocks of cannabis weighing 22.2 kilogrammes from two cartons being shipped to the UK. The seizures highlight the agency’s ongoing efforts to dismantle drug trafficking networks and prevent the movement of illicit substances through Nigeria’s airports and international cargo channels.

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