The suspect, identified as Ingrid Rosa Benevides, is said to work as a private security officer in Brazil. She was arrested on Friday, January 23, 2026, shortly after arriving in Abuja from Doha on a Qatar Airways flight, following intelligence-led surveillance.
A search of her two checked-in suitcases reportedly uncovered 21 factory-sealed packs of Brazilian coffee. Further inspection revealed that the packs did not contain coffee, but a white substance which later tested positive for heroin. The total weight of the seized drugs was put at 30.09 kilograms, with an estimated street value exceeding ₦3 billion.
NDLEA officials described the seizure as the largest single heroin interception ever recorded at the Abuja airport. During initial questioning, the suspect reportedly claimed she brought the concealed drugs into the country under the pretext of visiting Nigeria for a holiday.
Investigations into the case are ongoing.
An official of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency disclosed that, in a separate operation, officers stationed at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Ikeja, Lagos, intercepted two outbound passengers attempting to smuggle illicit drugs out of the country.
The suspects, identified as Adediran Adedoyin and Afatakpa Ochuko, were apprehended on Tuesday, January 20, while preparing to board a Turkish Airlines flight bound for Istanbul, Turkey. A search of their luggage uncovered a total of 3,990 pills of tapentadol (250mg) and tramaking (225mg), which had been carefully concealed inside food items packed in their bags.
In another development, operatives attached to the agency’s Marine Command intercepted a wooden boat in the early hours of Thursday, January 22, at Jakande Beach in the Lekki area of Lagos. The boat was found to be carrying 44 jumbo bags of Ghana Loud, a potent strain of cannabis, with a combined weight of 1,848 kilograms.
According to officials, the drug shipment had just arrived from Ghana when officers, acting on credible intelligence, moved in around 1:00 a.m., seized the entire consignment, and recovered the boat used to transport it. Investigations into both cases are ongoing.
A search of her two checked-in suitcases reportedly uncovered 21 factory-sealed packs of Brazilian coffee. Further inspection revealed that the packs did not contain coffee, but a white substance which later tested positive for heroin. The total weight of the seized drugs was put at 30.09 kilograms, with an estimated street value exceeding ₦3 billion.
NDLEA officials described the seizure as the largest single heroin interception ever recorded at the Abuja airport. During initial questioning, the suspect reportedly claimed she brought the concealed drugs into the country under the pretext of visiting Nigeria for a holiday.
Investigations into the case are ongoing.
An official of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency disclosed that, in a separate operation, officers stationed at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Ikeja, Lagos, intercepted two outbound passengers attempting to smuggle illicit drugs out of the country.
The suspects, identified as Adediran Adedoyin and Afatakpa Ochuko, were apprehended on Tuesday, January 20, while preparing to board a Turkish Airlines flight bound for Istanbul, Turkey. A search of their luggage uncovered a total of 3,990 pills of tapentadol (250mg) and tramaking (225mg), which had been carefully concealed inside food items packed in their bags.
In another development, operatives attached to the agency’s Marine Command intercepted a wooden boat in the early hours of Thursday, January 22, at Jakande Beach in the Lekki area of Lagos. The boat was found to be carrying 44 jumbo bags of Ghana Loud, a potent strain of cannabis, with a combined weight of 1,848 kilograms.
According to officials, the drug shipment had just arrived from Ghana when officers, acting on credible intelligence, moved in around 1:00 a.m., seized the entire consignment, and recovered the boat used to transport it. Investigations into both cases are ongoing.
