According to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), a 38-year old South African woman, Nene Fikil has been arrested for allegedly trafficking drugs.
The spokesman for the anti-drug agency Mr Mitchell Ofoyeju, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that the suspect was arrested at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, on Dec. 17.
According to him, the suspect was trying to board an Emirates plane when she developed stomach pain that prompted her to call for medical assistance.
“She gave herself up when she suddenly held her stomach in pain at the departure hall.
“She was to go through screening when suddenly she held her stomach and beckoned on security officials, demanding to see a doctor.
“Immediately, she was taken for scan which confirmed positive for narcotics ingestion.
“Under observation, she excreted 55 wraps of a substance that tested positive for methamphetamine, weighing 700 grammes; preliminary investigation revealed that she travelled to Malaysia from South Africa.
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“It was in Malaysia that she was recruited to smuggle drugs from Cotonou, Benin Republic, where she ingested the drug,” Ofoyeju told NAN.
He said that a doctor was invited to assist the suspect overcome the situational reaction to drug ingestion in order to save her .
According to Ofoyeju, the suspect, in her confessional statement, claimed to be a single mother who wanted to make life better for her 19-year old daughter.
“My desire to give my only child the best education made me to engage in drug trafficking; this is my first time and I was scared of death.
“I reported myself when I was feeling acute pain in my stomach,” the NDLEA spokesman quoted the suspect as saying.
He said, the South African Embassy in Nigeria had been contacted, while some officials had visited her.
Ofoyeju said that investigation would also be carried out under the aegis of the West Africa Joint Operations, an umbrella body of anti-drug agencies in the West African sub-region since she got the drugs in Cotonou.
ALSO SEE: South African Woman Caught Trafficking Drugs With Her Dreadlocks.
“We hope to dismantle the drug cell that sponsored the suspect, possibly under a joint operation since two countries are involved.
“Certainly, no stone shall be left unturned in this case.”
According to the spokesman, the suspect would be charged to court after the investigation is rounded off.