A 34-year-old Ugandan woman, Ms. Farida Nansubuga, has been arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, with 87 wraps of cocaine concealed in her private part at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, MMIA, Ikeja, Lagos.
This was disclosed in a statement signed by the Director, Media and Advocacy, NDLEA Headquarters, Abuja, Femi Babafemi, on Sunday.
According to Babafemi, Nansubuga was intercepted on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, at the screening point of Terminal 2 during a joint passenger screening exercise with aviation security personnel. She was due to board a Ugandan airline flight to her home country.
He said a body search pointed to a substance concealed around her pelvic region, after which she was taken to a designated private search room for a secondary search. This led to the recovery of 87 wraps of cocaine with a gross weight of 1.150 kilograms, strapped around her pelvic region and held in place beneath two layers of underwear.
Babafemi said during preliminary interview, the suspect said she arrived in Nigeria on October 29, 2026, with members of her church for a prayer session at The Synagogue Church of All Nations, SCOAN, Ikotun Egbe area of Lagos.
She claimed that after the prayer session, the other members of her delegation returned to Uganda while she stayed back to collect the illicit consignment on behalf of a friend, simply identified as Joy, who resides in Uganda.
According to her, Joy directed her to a contact in Nigeria who arranged a vehicle to bring her to a hotel on the morning of her scheduled departure. It was there, she said, that the man handed her the drug and instructed her to hide it beneath her clothing to beat security screening at the airport.
She claimed no definite fee was agreed for the trip, but that she expected to be paid not less than US$1,000 on successful delivery.
Commenting on the arrest, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), noted that the case of the Ugandan woman is a sad reminder that drug cartels will stop at nothing, including exploiting faith and religious travel, to recruit couriers for their deadly trade.
He urged officers across all commands to sustain the tempo of their supply and demand reduction efforts
