NDLEA Arrests 63-Year-Old Chinese Woman Over Alleged Drug Smuggling, Seizes Multi-Billion Naira Consignments
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 63-year-old Chinese national, Ting Hung Kiong, for allegedly attempting to smuggle a large consignment of Canadian Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis, into Nigeria.
The suspect, who is said to have naturalised in Malaysia, was arrested on Sunday, May 17, 2026, upon her arrival at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, aboard an Emirates Airline flight from Thailand through Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
According to the NDLEA, operatives attached to the Terminal 2 Arrival Hall intercepted the suspect with two large travel boxes containing 31 kilograms of the illicit substance.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the suspect travelled from Malaysia to Thailand before proceeding to Nigeria through the UAE route.
During interrogation, Ting reportedly stated that she works as a caregiver in Malaysia and claimed her daughter sponsored her trip to Thailand and Nigeria. She further alleged that she spent two weeks in Thailand before receiving the drug consignment at the airport for delivery in Nigeria.
In a separate operation at the Lagos airport, NDLEA operatives also intercepted a major shipment of illicit pharmaceutical products.
The agency disclosed that following surveillance operations, the Nigeria Customs Service handed over 29 large cartons containing 1,825,710 tablets of Tapentadol 250mg, estimated at over N2.19 billion, to the NDLEA after the consignment arrived from India aboard an Emirates Cargo flight.
Elsewhere, at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport in Enugu, operatives arrested Onyeka Valentine Emeka on May 20 during passenger clearance for an Ethiopian Airlines flight arriving from Sierra Leone through Addis Ababa.
The agency said the suspect later excreted 185.36 grams of cocaine after being placed under observation.
Similarly, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, a 29-year-old building engineer identified as Babatunde Prosper Afekhide was arrested while attempting to board an Ethiopian Airlines flight to Milan, Italy, through Addis Ababa.
A search of his luggage reportedly uncovered 10,280 pills of Tramaking 225mg, Tramadol 200mg and Tapentadol 250mg concealed inside cartons and wrapped with foil materials.
The agency also recorded seizures at a courier facility in Lagos, where operatives intercepted 1,174 MDMA tablets hidden in bicycle luggage carriers bound for the Netherlands, alongside tramadol tablets concealed in soap and body cream containers destined for the United States and the United Kingdom.
Further operations in Edo, Kano, Lagos and Ekiti states led to the recovery of large quantities of cannabis and the arrest of suspects linked to drug trafficking activities.
NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended officers involved in the operations and urged them to sustain efforts aimed at reducing drug trafficking and strengthening anti-drug awareness campaigns across the country.
NDLEA Arrests 63-Year-Old Chinese Woman Over Alleged Drug Smuggling, Seizes Multi-Billion Naira Consignments