NAIJAFEED

Friday, September 18, 2026

Nigerian court sentence South African citizen to 40 years in prison for drug trafficking

A Federal High Court in Abuja, Nigeria's capital, has sentenced a South African national to 40 years in prison after finding her guilty of trafficking 5.75 kilograms of heroin into the country through the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja.

The court convicted 38-year-old Jessica Ann Will on Thursday, September 17.

Justice Obiora Egwuatu, who convicted and sentenced Will after she entered a guilty plea, stated that crime does not pay and emphasized that the court must follow statutory legal procedures unswayed by emotion.

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) arraigned Will on two counts: unlawful importation of 5.75 kg of heroin and conspiracy to import the narcotics into Nigeria—offenses punishable under Section 14 of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act, Cap N30, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.

Justice Egwuatu handed down a 15-year prison sentence on count one and 25 years on count two, totaling 40 years. However, the sentences will run concurrently, meaning she will serve a maximum term of 25 years.

Following the conviction, the prosecution urged the court to factor in the narcotics' street value when determining the sentence, noting that a single kilogram of heroin sells for roughly ₦18 million.

Allowed an allocutus to plead for leniency, Will expressed remorse, promised never to repeat the offense, and claimed she was unaware that illicit substances were hidden inside her luggage.

Reacting to the ruling, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, retired Brigadier-General Mohamed Buba Marwa, praised the judgment as evidence of the Nigerian judiciary’s unwavering support for the agency’s war against illicit narcotics, warning that Nigeria will never offer a soft landing to international drug cartels. He added that the swift progression from arrest to conviction demonstrates the operational efficiency of the NDLEA and its close coordination with the court.

NDLEA operatives arrested Will on Monday, July 6, 2026, after discovering 14 large blocks of heroin weighing 5.75 kg hidden inside her bags. The agency noted that she attempted to use her three-year-old son as a cover to divert suspicion and evade strict security checks.

According to the NDLEA, officers intercepted her during passenger clearance on Qatar Airways flight QR 1433 from Doha to Abuja. The suspect initially claimed she had no checked baggage, but investigators quickly matched two suspicious suitcases containing the heroin blocks to luggage tags tied to her passport.

The NDLEA stated that Will belongs to a transnational syndicate operated alongside her husband or partner, Jan Coenraad De Jager. The pair were based in Cambodia, running a narcotics pipeline along the Cambodian–South African route. South African law enforcement subsequently arrested De Jager in Johannesburg on July 27, 2026, as he allegedly attempted to traffic 3.2 kg of illicit narcotics to Hong Kong.

BBC

Nigerian police probe death in custody of 37 illegal mining suspects

Nigerian police have launched an investigation into the deaths of 37 people who were in custody after being arrested for illegal mining.

Officials on Thursday linked the deaths to an outbreak of disease. However, the AFP news agency said that an intelligence report suggested that overcrowding and poor ventilation inside the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) detention facility in the northeastern Niger State may have been to blame.

The suspects were arrested during an operation targeting illegal mining on Tuesday and Wednesday, the head of the NSCDC in Niger State, Suberu Siyaka Aniviye, said in a statement. The region is known for small-scale gold mining.

Officials suspect disease was the cause of the deaths, Aniviye said, noting the bodies have been sent for “further medical examination to establish the actual cause of death.” He did not elaborate on the type of disease suspected.

However, survivor Dauda Shehu told The Associated Press news agency that 65 detainees were packed into a poorly ventilated cell, suggesting they may have suffocated.

“We were jam-packed and there was no ventilation for us to breathe well,” Shehu said. “All of a sudden, we realised that we could not breathe and we started scrambling to get fresh air.”

Speaking at the Minna General Hospital, where the bodies were sent for examination, Shehu said the detainees tried to get the attention of the security agency’s guards by banging on the cell door.

Investigators have urged relatives of the victims to come forward with any information that could help.

Niger State Governor Farmer Mohammed Umaru Bago has announced three days of mourning, calling the deaths “sad and tragic”.

Protests were reported to have broken out on Thursday evening, with police responding by firing tear gas. Local outlets reported that NSCDC commander Aniviye has been suspended.

Al Jazeera

Thursday, September 17, 2026

At least 48 dead in Nigeria after consuming drink suspected to contain methanol

At least 48 people have died and around 100 others are receiving treatment in southern Nigeria after consuming a drink suspected to contain methanol, officials said on Thursday.

Banji Ajaka, Ondo state’s commissioner for health, said the cases had been reported in the Odigbo and Irele local government areas. A total of 182 people are believed to have been affected, he said.

“This thing happened rapidly. Once they consume, depending on the quantity, the kidneys will pack up, the eyes will go, the brain will be damaged,” Ajaka told The Associated Press.

Some of those who became ill after consuming the liquid have since been discharged from hospital, he added.

Ondo state police spokesman Abayomi Jimoh said one of 15 people who have been arrested in connection with the incident had been producing drink “suspected to contain methanol and is currently assisting the police with investigations.”

Local media reports said the first death was reported nearly two weeks ago.

By Dyepkazah Shibayan, AP

Dangote IPO tests Nigeria's fintech infrastructure as investor demand overwhelms platforms

Several Nigerian digital investment platforms suffered outages as retail investors rushed to buy shares in Dangote Petroleum Refinery, highlighting the strain Africa's largest-ever share sale is placing on fintech infrastructure.

Regulators and market participants have urged first-time ‌investors to be cautious as the record $1.6 billion offering, launched this week by Aliko Dangote, seeks broad public participation through banks, mobile operators and fintech platforms.

Neither Dangote nor the underwriters have provided any figures for demand for the shares. However, the disruptions point to strong retail investor interest in the offer and illustrate the growing role fintech firms may play in widening access to Nigeria's capital markets.

When the IPO launched on Monday, Temi Popoola, CEO of NGX Group, said demand was so high that some investment apps crashed.

"I think this particular IPO is stress testing Nigeria's financial infrastructure across the board. Us fintechs are being tested to take this massive ⁠amount of traffic," Yanmo Omorogbe, co-founder and chief operating officer at one of the largest platforms, Bamboo, told Reuters.

Omorogbe said Bamboo faced outages after traffic on Bamboo's app surged to 10 times normal levels within 30 minutes of the IPO going live on Monday. The spike also affected some of Bamboo's third-party service providers, compounding the disruption.

"So you have almost a perfect storm, or should we say an imperfect storm, of massive influx of customers, third-party providers, and then multiple retries, creating even more demand on our system," Omorogbe said. "And to be very, very honest, our system broke."

MILLIONS EXPECTED TO BUY SHARES

Users of other platforms that allow digital share subscriptions, including Cowrywise and InvestNaija, also reported difficulties accessing services and executing transactions.

Oluwayinka Alaje, who runs a small printing shop in Abuja, said his attempt to buy Dangote shares on Bamboo had failed and he was only able to use another app late at night.

InvestNaija directed users to its WhatsApp channel after its platform was overwhelmed.
Bamboo and InvestNaija said their platforms were operating normally by Wednesday. ‌Cowrywise did ⁠not respond to requests for comment.

Some stockbrokers, including Chapel Hill Denham, are also using WhatsApp to reach potential investors. Chapel Hill Denham did not respond to a request for comment.

Betting that digital distribution channels will help attract millions of investors, including Nigerians who have never owned shares and those with limited access to traditional banking services, Dangote told local television he expects 10 million people to buy shares in the refinery.

Dangote has marketed it as a "people's IPO" - an opportunity to share the benefits of his business's growth, with the minimum investment set at just 10 shares or ⁠around $4 - a lower threshold than in previous IPOs.

The refinery, which cost more than $20 billion to build, has emerged as a key supplier of fuel to Europe following disruptions to Middle East exports. It increased fuel exports this year during the crisis, delivering a net profit of $1.82 billion in the first half of 2026 on revenue of more than $13 billion, according to its prospectus.

"ALL SORTS OF ⁠SCAMS"

The rush to buy into one of Africa's most significant industrial projects could create opportunities for fraudsters to target investors through phishing attempts, fake investment websites and impersonation scams designed to exploit the inexperienced.

"Somebody can create all sorts of scams. By the time people know about it, the guys have left town," said Bismarck Rewane, chief executive of Lagos-based ⁠Financial Derivatives Company.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has called on investors to be wary before they transfer funds or provide any personal information. The SEC has not reported any cases of fraud.

Analysts say the risks may be especially acute for first-time investors using mobile applications, where the speed and simplicity of digital transactions can make it harder to distinguish legitimate offers from fraudulent ones.

By Macdonald Dzirutwe, Reuters

Wednesday, September 16, 2026

Video - Dangote Refinery launches Nigeria's largest-ever IPO

Aliko Dangote launched an initial public offering for his refinery, seeking to raise $1.6 billion in what is being billed as Africa's largest share sale. If the offer is oversubscribed, a green-shoe option could increase the fundraising target to $2.1 billion, with ordinary Nigerians able to subscribe from as little as 10 shares.

CGTN Africa