A 37-year-old Nigerian woman, Margret Mgbudom, has been arraigned before the Chief Judicial Magistrate Court in Navsari, Gujarat, India, for allegedly importing cocaine worth Rs 1.49 crore (approximately N256m)
According to reports, Gujarat’s State Monitoring Cell seized the cocaine from Mgbudom last Wednesday during a surveillance drive on the highway. A forensic analysis confirmed the seized contraband to be 149.51 grams of cocaine.
Mgbudom, a resident of Meera Road in Mumbai, was booked under different sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act. Her case was first registered at the SMC police station on January 31, 2025.
During interrogation, Mgbudom revealed that the cocaine belonged to a person named Elder in Nigeria. She claimed to have received the drugs from one Emmanuel of Mumbai and was on her way to deliver them to a person in Surat when she was arrested.
The police suspect that an international drug cartel is operating in India, with links to Nigeria. “We suspect that the cocaine might have come from Nigeria through peddlers, but it is the local members of the cartel in India who identify the customers and sell it at high rates,” said SMC police inspector V C Jadeja.
Mgbudom’s arrest and arraignment highlight the ongoing efforts of Indian authorities to combat drug trafficking and organized crime. The case is ongoing, and further investigations are being conducted to uncover the extent of the alleged drug cartel’s operations.