LONDON-(MaraviPost)–A Nigerian-British grandmother has been arrested after authorities allegedly found 13kg of cocaine concealed in plantain peels.
The arrest was made during a routine inspection at a major UK port of entry, according to officials familiar with the case.
Border Force officers said they became suspicious of a consignment of food items declared as plantains.
Upon closer examination, they discovered that the plantain peels had been hollowed out and used to hide packages of a white powdery substance.
Laboratory tests later confirmed the substance to be cocaine.
The total weight of the drugs seized was 13 kilograms.
Authorities estimate the street value of the haul to be in the hundreds of thousands of pounds.
The 67-year-old woman was traveling with family members and was detained immediately after the discovery.
She has been identified as a grandmother of several children living in South London.
Investigators say she was returning to the UK from West Africa at the time of the arrest.
The National Crime Agency has taken over the investigation.
Officials believe the method of concealment was intended to evade detection by customs scanners and sniffer dogs.
Plantains and other foodstuffs are common imports in Nigerian and Caribbean communities across the UK.
That has made the smuggling tactic particularly difficult to spot, authorities noted.
The suspect remains in custody and is expected to appear before a magistrates’ court in the coming days.
She has not yet entered a plea to the charges.
A spokesperson for the National Crime Agency said the arrest highlights the evolving methods used by drug trafficking networks.
“Organized criminals will go to extraordinary lengths to move drugs across borders,” the spokesperson said.
“But our officers are trained to spot these concealments and we will continue to disrupt their operations.”
Community leaders in London’s Nigerian diaspora expressed shock at the arrest.
They urged young people not to be drawn into drug-related crime.
The case is expected to proceed to the Crown Court for trial later this year.
