Operatives of Nigeria’s National Drug Law Enforcement Agency have arrested a Brazilian woman at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja after intercepting more than 30 kilograms of heroin concealed in factory-sealed coffee packs, a haul the agency valued at over ₦3 billion on the streets.
The suspect, identified as 30-year-old Ingrid Rosa Benevides, was taken into custody on Friday, January 23, 2026, upon her arrival in Abuja aboard Qatar Airways flight QR1431. NDLEA officials said the arrest followed actionable intelligence that led officers to subject her luggage to a detailed search.
According to the agency, Benevides, who reportedly works as a private security officer in Brazil, was found with two checked-in bags containing 21 factory-sealed packets of Brazilian coffee. Further examination revealed the packs did not contain coffee but a white substance that later tested positive for heroin, with a total weight of 30.09 kilograms.
NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi said the seizure represents the single largest heroin interception ever recorded at the Abuja airport. He added that during a preliminary interview, the suspect claimed she brought the drug consignment under the guise of traveling to Nigeria for a holiday.
In a related operation, NDLEA officers at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Ikeja, Lagos, intercepted two passengers attempting to fly to Istanbul, Turkey, aboard a Turkish Airlines flight on Tuesday, January 20. The suspects, identified as Adediran Adedoyin and Afatakpa Ochuko, were found with 3,990 pills of tapentadol 250mg and tramaking 225mg concealed inside food items packed in their luggage, the agency said.
Separately, NDLEA operatives attached to the Marine Command intercepted a wooden boat loaded with cannabis along the Lagos coastline. The operation, carried out in the early hours of Thursday, January 22, led to the seizure of 44 jumbo bags of “Ghana Loud,” a potent strain of cannabis weighing 1,848 kilograms, at Jakande Beach in Lekki.
Babafemi said the boat had just arrived from Ghana when officers, acting on credible intelligence, raided the area around 1 a.m., recovered the drugs and secured the vessel.
The NDLEA said investigations into all the cases are ongoing as part of broader efforts to disrupt international drug trafficking networks using Nigeria as a transit or destination point.
LindaIkeji
