by Zainab Imam
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has arrested a 38-year-old South African woman, Will Jessica Ann, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja for attempting to smuggle 5.75 kilograms of heroin into the country. The agency said the suspect was arrested on July 6 during the inward clearance of passengers on a Qatar Airways flight from Doha. She was found with 14 large blocks of heroin concealed in two suitcases and had travelled with her three-year-old son in what the NDLEA described as an attempt to use the child as cover to beat security checks.
According to the NDLEA, the suspect initially denied travelling with any checked-in luggage. However, operatives were able to match the baggage claim tags on the suitcases to the tags attached to her passport, after which she admitted ownership of the bags, claiming she had forgotten she checked them in. The NDLEA said she told investigators she had travelled from Cambodia through Doha to Abuja. Intelligence reports indicate she is linked to a transnational drug trafficking syndicate operating along the Cambodia-South Africa route with her husband and partner, Jan Coenraad De Jager, who is reportedly based in Cambodia. Investigations into the network are ongoing.
Abuja Network News
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