Delhi-based Nigerian woman, carrying Rs 10-cr synthetic drugs, arrested in Bengaluru

Bengaluru: The Bengaluru police on Friday announced the arrest of a 25-year-old foreign national found with 5.3 kg of MDMA crystals worth Rs 10 crore near Chikkajala.

The suspect has been identified as Akinwunmi Princess Ifeoluwa, a Nigerian national who has been living in Delhi’s Uttam Nagar for the past four years.

She arrived in India in 2021 on a student visa, but did not secure admission to any college, the police said.

Ifeoluwa was caught red-handed while waiting for a customer to collect the consignment. The operation was conducted by the Chikkajala police and the Central Crime Branch’s (CCB) Anti-Narcotics Wing.

"The CCB had been investigating a drug-peddling network run by foreign nationals for the past few months and had arrested several foreigners. However, this is a significant operation, as she had not been arrested in the last four years,” an investigator said.

Ifeoluwa told the police that she acted under the instructions of her friend, identified only as Asa. On Asa’s direction, she collected a bag in Delhi, containing 11 salwar sets concealing MDMA crystals.

"I do not know the person who gave me the bag. I just collected it as instructed by Asa. I came to Bengaluru via bus to deliver the bag, but the person who was supposed to collect it did not show up,” Ifeoluwa claimed.

The investigator said that a car arrived at Tarahunase village near Chikkajala, where Ifeoluwa was waiting, but left without stopping.

The intended recipients may have learned about the police operation and fled, prompting the CCB officers to move in and arrest her.

Ifeoluwa also told the police she was initially supposed to take admission at a college in Telangana in 2021. However, when she got there, she did not feel welcome and decided against joining. She claimed to have turned to drug peddling to earn quick money and return home.

The police suspect Ifeoluwa procured synthetic drugs and came to Bengaluru to sell them to other foreign peddlers operating in the city.

She had been staying in Delhi with her boyfriend, and the police are now investigating whether he is also involved in drug peddling.

Authorities have written to the Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO) as her visa expired in 2022.