NDLEA intercepts Indian woman with ’72 parcels of heroin’ at Kano airport

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) says its operatives intercepted 72 parcels of heroin concealed in chocolate wraps at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport in Kano.

According to a statement on Sunday by Femi Babafemi, NDLEA spokesperson, the class A drug consignment, weighing 11 kilogrammes, was recovered from the luggage of Neetu Neetu, a 42-year-old Indian woman, who arrived on a Qatar Airways flight from Bangkok, Thailand via Vietnam and Doha.

Babafemi said the arrest of Neetu on March 14, 2025, is a testament to the NDLEA’s unwavering commitment to ridding Nigeria of illicit drugs.

According to the spokesperson, Mohammed Buba Marwa, NDLEA chairman, said Neetu’s arrest highlights the growing trend of drug trafficking organisations hiring foreign nationals to smuggle illicit substances into Nigeria.

NDLEA officers in Kano also seized 50,000 tramadol pills concealed in a 50-litre steel gas cylinder from Michael Ogundele, a 45-year-old suspect.

The pills, which weighed 50 kilogrammes, were recovered at Gadar Tamburawa, along Zaria-Kano road, on March 20.

Furthermore, NDLEA operatives in Kano arrested 40-year-old Sunday Ogar, with 27kg of skunk, a strain of cannabis, in the Gunduwawa area on March 19.

One Khadijah Abdullahi was also arrested with 424 bottles of codeine-based syrup in the Lungun Bulala Yalwa area on March 18.

The NDLEA spokesperson said the agency also intensified its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) social advocacy sensitisation engagements in schools, markets, and communities across the country.

He said the agency has been engaging with various stakeholders, including students, traders, and community leaders, to raise awareness about the dangers of drug abuse and the importance of reporting suspected cases of drug trafficking.