A 50-year-old widow and fashion designer, Mrs. Ifeoma Henrietta Ezewuike, was arrested by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in Lagos for attempting to traffic 1.3 kilograms of cocaine concealed using a fake pregnancy setup. The arrest, which took place on August 22, 2025, offers a startling glimpse into the lengths individuals may go to conceal illicit activity.

The Smuggling Plot: A Pregnancy That Wasn’t

Operatives caught Mrs. Ezewuike at a bus terminal in Jibowu, Yaba, Lagos, as she was preparing to transport the cocaine to clients in Abuja. To throw off sobriety checks, she had strapped the cocaine around her waist, mimicking the silhouette of an expectant mother.

A subsequent search of her residence in the Ago Palace area uncovered 200 grams of chemical cutting agents used in cocaine processing.

Who Is Mrs. Ezewuike?

Beyond this suspicious act, Mrs. Ezewuike presents a contrasting profile. She is a mother of one and runs Golden Star Creation, a fashion business she has managed for two decades. In her statement to NDLEA, she claimed to have inherited the drug trade from her late husband who passed away two years ago—though she insists that her fashion career remained her primary occupation.

A Larger NDLEA Crackdown

Her arrest is just one in a broader crackdown. Agency officers recently intercepted 48.6 kilograms of high-grade cannabis (“Loud”) disguised inside kitchen sink cartons at a Lagos shipping company.

Elsewhere, widespread drugs, including opioids, illicit barbiturates, and cannabis plantations, were seized or destroyed across Nigeria—from Adamawa to Kwara, Delta, and Edo State—as part of nationwide anti-narcotics operations.