NDLEA Arrests Nigerian-British Grandma With 13kg Cocaine Disguised As Plantains
Drug traffickers are adopting increasingly deceptive methods to beat security checks, but a cocaine shipment disguised as ordinary plantains has landed a 67-year-old Nigerian-British grandmother in NDLEA custody.
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) arrested Mrs Mary Yetunde Barek at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, after allegedly discovering 13 kilogrammes of cocaine concealed in fake plantain peels among food items in her luggage.
Barek, a caregiver in the United Kingdom, was arrested on Sunday while attempting to board a Virgin Atlantic flight to London.
NDLEA said a search of her luggage uncovered 31 wraps of cocaine packaged to resemble plantains.
In a separate operation, the agency arrested a 45-year-old PhD student, Nwabueze Felix Onyeka, in Anambra State for allegedly masterminding an attempt to smuggle 5.8 kilogrammes of cocaine to Malaysia.
The drugs were concealed in the walls of nine cartons of Orijin bitters.
NDLEA also announced major drug seizures across Taraba, Kaduna, Ebonyi, Plateau and Gombe states, including the arrest of a 75-year-old man and the recovery of large quantities of tramadol, methamphetamine and cannabis.
NDLEA Chairman, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended officers involved in the operations and urged personnel nationwide to intensify the fight against drug trafficking.
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