The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 43-year-old female make-up artist, Adekoya Adebukonla Mary, who claimed to be travelling to India for fibroid surgery, at the Lagos International Airport, after 2.20 kilograms of cocaine were discovered factory-fitted in the walls of her bag.
A statement by the spokesman of the NDLEA, Mr Femi Babafemi, on Sunday said the suspect was arrested on 16th June 2025 based on credible intelligence.
Under surveillance, Adekoya was allowed to check in her luggage and was arrested at the point of boarding her Qatar Airways flight to India via Doha. When her luggage was searched, two large parcels of cocaine weighing 2.20kg were found concealed in the walls of the suitcase she was carrying.
In her statement, she claimed she embarked on the trip for financial benefits but under the pretext of going to India for surgery to remove fibroid from her stomach. Further investigation revealed that the suspect was recruited and funded by a drug baron currently at large, Akeem Ayinde Adekanbi, who owns Rockford Hotel located in the Sango area of Ogun State, while he lives at Igbe Laara in the Igbogbo area of Ikorodu, Lagos State.
At a courier company in Lagos, NDLEA operatives of the Directorate of Operation and General Investigation (DOGI) on 19th June intercepted a shipment of sewn female dresses containing 1.3kg Loud, a strong strain of cannabis, going to Bahrain. At another courier firm the previous day, 18th June, operatives uncovered 850 grams of cocaine concealed in cloth hangers heading to Australia.
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