A 74-year-old man, Ikwuakalom Nwakoro Emeka, has been arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport after a large consignment of cocaine was discovered concealed in his luggage.
The development was disclosed in a statement by the agency’s spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, who said the septuagenarian, claiming he was travelling to London, United Kingdom, for vacation, was intercepted at the departure hall of the Abuja airport while attempting to board a British Airways flight BA082 bound for Heathrow, London, on Saturday, March 14, 2026.
According to the agency, a search of his luggage uncovered blocks of cocaine weighing 11 kilogrammes concealed inside food items, including ground dry pepper. The illicit substance was reportedly carefully wrapped in foil papers and balloons in an attempt to evade detection.
In a related development in Lagos, NDLEA operatives acting on credible intelligence in the early hours of Monday, March 9, arrested a woman, Mrs. Maryam Olalowo, at Ikad Hotel and Suites on Etim Inyang Street while she was attempting to sell 89 grammes of cocaine and 20 grammes of Canadian Loud, a strain of cannabis.
She was found with her three children, including an infant, at the time of the arrest.
During interrogation, she confessed that the illicit drugs belonged to her husband, Ibrahim Olalowo Olatunji. He was subsequently taken into custody the same day, while his wife was immediately released.
Ibrahim confirmed ownership of the drugs in his statement. Further investigation also revealed that he had previously been arrested, convicted, and sentenced to two and a half years imprisonment for a similar offence in 2015.
