A 25-year-old Nigerian woman, Ifeoluwa Akinwunmi, faces up to 20 years in prison in India after allegedly being found in possession of drugs valued at over ₦1.8 billion.
Akinwunmi, reportedly a hairstylist and nail technician, was arrested last Tuesday by officers of the Anti-Narcotics Wing of the Central Crime Branch in Bengaluru.
She was taken into custody in Tarahunase village, along Rajanukunte Main Road, shortly after arriving from Delhi with a suspicious-looking bag.
According to The New Indian Express, as cited by PUNCH Metro on Monday, the bag was found to contain 5.325 kilograms of MDMA crystals—a prohibited party drug—hidden among 11 brand-new churidars, a type of traditional Indian clothing.
“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. Akinwunmi was arrested while standing with the bag,” a police officer involved in the operation was quoted as saying.
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The suspect, who claimed she traveled to India with plans to open a beauty salon, is now being prosecuted under India’s Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act of 1985 and the Foreigners Act of 1946.
Section 23 of the NDPS Act imposes strict penalties for individuals involved in the import, export, or transshipment of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances.
As outlined in the Indian legal code reviewed by PUNCH Metro, possession of a commercial quantity—such as the MDMA recovered from Akinwunmi—carries a mandatory prison sentence of 10 to 20 years, along with substantial fines.
The section reads in part, “Where the contravention involves commercial quantity, [the offender shall be punished] with rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than ten years but which may extend to twenty years and shall also be liable to a fine which shall not be less than one lakh rupees but which may extend to two lakh rupees.”
“Under the Foreigners Act of 1946, the Indian government holds the power to prosecute and deport foreign nationals engaged in criminal activities.
Akinwunmi’s arrest follows closely on the heels of another case involving a Nigerian national, Emmanuel Bediako—also known as Maxwell—who was taken into custody by the Telangana Anti-Narcotics Bureau just two days earlier for alleged involvement in drug trafficking.”
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