Anebi
A 25-year-old Nigerian woman, Ifeoluwa Akinwunmi, has been arrested in India for alleged drug trafficking after she was caught in possession of 5.325 kilograms of MDMA crystals, commonly known as ecstasy, valued at over ₹10 crore (approximately $1.2 million or N1.8 billion).
Akinwunmi, who identified herself as a hairstylist and nail artist, was arrested on Tuesday by the Anti-Narcotics Wing of the Central Crime Branch (CCB) in Bengaluru’s Tarahunase village, along Rajanukunte Main Road.
According to The New Indian Express, she was intercepted based on intelligence received by narcotics officers.
Authorities said she had arrived from Delhi with a bag suspected to contain narcotics, which she intended to deliver to a group of African drug peddlers in the area.
“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,” an officer said.
The bag also contained 11 new churidar outfits.
During initial questioning, Akinwunmi claimed she was unaware of the contents and said a friend in Delhi had asked her to deliver it to a man wearing a black hat.
She told police that she had come to India with plans to open a beauty salon and identified herself as the daughter of a Nigerian civil servant, though she refused to share further personal details.
Authorities revealed that she initially entered India on a business visa in October 2021 and later switched to a student visa for a university in Telangana, which she never attended.
Her visa expired in 2022, and she has remained in India illegally since.
“There are credible leads on her boyfriend in Delhi, who is absconding. She will be taken into police custody for further investigation,” a senior officer said, adding that this is her first recorded case in the city.
Akinwunmi, also known by the alias “Princess,” has been handed over to the jurisdictional Chikkajala police station for further legal proceedings.
25-year-old Nigerian woman arrested in India with drugs worth N1.8bn
