Get Guardian on GoogleA 25-year-old Nigerian hairstylist and nail artist, Ifeoluwa Akinwunmi, has been arrested by the India Anti-Narcotics Wing of the Central Bureau of Investigation for being in possession of 5.325 kilograms of MDMA crystals, estimated to be worth Rs 10 crore (over N1.8bn).
According to The New Indian Express, she was arrested last Tuesday at Tarahunase village, Rajanukunte Main Road, Bengaluru, weeks after another Nigerian, Emmanuel Bediako, also known as Maxwell, was arrested by the Telangana Anti-Narcotics Bureau for drug trafficking.
The New Indian Express, Akinwunmi was nabbed on arrival at Delhi with a suspicious bag which contained the drugs and 11 new churidars, traditional Indian outfits, following a tipoff.
Findings revealed that Akinwunmi arrived in India in October 2021 on a business visa but later obtained a student visa to study at a university in Telangana. She, however, never enrolled and has been illegally overstaying in the country since her visa expired in 2022.
She, however, said she denied knowing the content in the bag, stressing that a friend in Delhi had instructed her to deliver it to a man wearing a black hat.
According to her, she planned to start a salon business in Bengaluru and identified herself as the daughter of a Nigerian civil servant, though she refused to provide additional personal details.
“She is a courier. She had come to hand over the drugs to a group of African peddlers,
“We noticed four men on two scooters in the area, but they did not collect the parcel. Princess was arrested while standing with the bag.
“There are credible leads on her boyfriend in Delhi, who is currently absconding. She will be taken into police custody for further investigation.
“This is the first case registered against her in the city, and we are yet to verify if there are any cases elsewhere in the country, ” police officer told The New Indian Express.
