Female traveller held with 193 wraps of cocaine

A female traveller, Rose Igbainoba, has been arrested with 193 wraps of cocaine inside packs of sweets at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos. The whitish substance tested positive to cocaine and weighed 3.230kgs.

Anti-narcotics officials discovered the drugs in the luggage of the 24-yearold Igbainoba, who was returning to Nigeria from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) also arrested a suspected member of the drug cartel identified as Chimezie Ofor.

The NDLEA Commander at the MMIA, Mr. Ahmadu Garba, said Igbainoba, who hails from Edo State, was found in possession of the drug while a suspected member of the drug cartel in Lagos was successfully traced and apprehended. He said:

“Igbainoba Uche Rose, who concealed 3.230kgs inside sweets, was apprehended at the arrival hall during inward screening of passengers. A suspected member of the cartel, Ofor Kamsochukwu Chimezie, was arrested on a follow-up operation. The suspects are being investigated.”

The Head, Public Affairs of NDLEA, Ofoyeju Mitchell, said in a statement that during interrogation, Igbainoba said that she worked as a clerical officer after her secondary school. She said: “I work as a clerical officer after I completed my primary school because there was no money to further my studies.

I have suffered hardship in life but a man offered to assist me to establish my personal business. He promised to pay me N500,000. This was how I got involved in this problem.” The Chairman/Chief Executive of NDLEA, Muhammad Abdallah, warned drug traffickers to desist from their criminal acts. He said:

“Drug criminals should shun their unlawful act because the agency has perfected strategies to detect narcotics notwithstanding how cleverly they were concealed. Recent drug seizures clearly reflect the reformation of the NDLEA as an intelligence-led organisation. “We are determined to trace major traffickers behind the scene and prosecute the barons.”