A 34-year-old Ugandan woman, Farida Nansubuga, has been arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, for allegedly attempting to smuggle 1.15kg of cocaine to Uganda.

The suspect, who reportedly arrived in Nigeria on October 29, 2026, alongside members of her church for a prayer session at the Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN), Ikotun, Lagos, was arrested on Tuesday, November 3, while preparing to board a flight back to Uganda.

According to the NDLEA, the other members of her delegation had returned to Uganda after the prayer session, but Nansubuga allegedly remained behind to collect a cocaine consignment on behalf of a friend identified as Joy, who resides in Uganda.

The agency disclosed that 87 wraps of cocaine, weighing 1.15kg, were recovered from the suspect's pelvic region, where they had been strapped beneath two layers of underwear.

During preliminary interrogation, she reportedly told investigators that a Nigerian contact arranged for her transportation to a hotel, where an unidentified man handed her the drugs and instructed her to conceal them beneath her clothing to evade airport security.

She allegedly expected to receive at least $1,000 upon successful delivery of the consignment.

In a separate operation at the Lagos airport, NDLEA operatives intercepted 750,000 tablets of Tapentadol 250mg, weighing 526kg and valued at N900 million, in a shipment from India falsely declared as Paracetamol tablets.

The agency also intercepted 32 parcels of Loud, a cannabis strain, weighing 16.15kg, concealed inside two wooden sofas in a cargo shipment from Houston, United States. Two suspects, including a freight agent, were subsequently arrested in connection with the consignment.

Other operations across Lagos, Ondo, Ekiti, Edo, Taraba, Enugu and Delta states resulted in the arrest of several suspects and the seizure of large quantities of cannabis, opioids, synthetic cannabis chemicals, tramadol and other illicit substances.

In Ondo State, operatives recovered 1,818kg of cannabis from Odofin Road, Uso, while another 242kg was recovered from a cannabis farm in Board Forest, where a one-hectare plantation was destroyed and a suspect arrested.

In Taraba State, three suspects were arrested with 283 blocks of compressed cannabis weighing 226.255kg within two days.

The NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), commended officers of the agency's affected commands for the operations.

Marwa described the Ugandan woman's arrest as a sad reminder that drug cartels could exploit religious activities and travel to recruit unsuspecting or willing couriers for their illicit trade.

He urged officers across the country to sustain efforts aimed at reducing both the supply and demand for illicit drugs.