The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has detained a female suspected drug peddler for allegedly attempting to smuggle a large consignment of cocaine to Iran.

The arrest took place at the Port Harcourt International Airport, Rivers.

According to a statement on Sunday by NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi, the suspect had disguised in a hijab to evade security checks.

He said the suspect was intercepted on May 3 at the departure hall of the airport while attempting to board a Qatar Airways flight to Iran via Doha, following credible intelligence.

A search revealed that she had concealed three wraps of cocaine in her private parts, and two additional large parcels of the drug were discovered hidden in false compartments of her handbag.

“As she had swallowed 67 pellets of cocaine, she was placed under excretion observation, and after four excretions over several days, she expelled 67 wraps of the substance,” Mr Babafemi said.

“She claimed she was meant to swallow 70 pellets but could only ingest 67. She then inserted the remaining three in her private part.”

The total weight of the cocaine recovered from her body amounted to 2.523 kilogrammes.

In a related operation, NDLEA operatives at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos, arrested and detained a 22-year-old British national on Friday.

The Briton, who arrived from Thailand via Doha on a Qatar Airways flight, was found in possession of 35 parcels of “Loud”, a potent strain of cannabis, weighing 37.6 kilogrammes.

“He confessed to previously being convicted twice in the UK for drug trafficking and robbery.

“He further revealed he was recruited in London to travel to Thailand, pick up the drug consignment, and bring it to Nigeria,” Mr Babafemi said.

Meanwhile, Mr Babafemi said NDLEA’s War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) advocacy campaign continued nationwide over the past week.

He said sensitisation lectures were delivered to students and staff at various institutions, including Federal Government College, Sokoto, Deeper Life International College, Nteje, Anambra.

The other schools included, Martins Sanda Girls Science College, Paikoro, Niger, and Restoration Power International School, Idua Eket, Akwa Ibom.

“In Oyo State, NDLEA officials conducted a WADA enlightenment lecture for members of the League of Imams and Alfas at the Iseyin Central Mosque,” Mr Babafemi said.

(NAN)