Cocaine trafficking: Court convicts 11 Indian sailors, orders ship to pay $5.3m

A Federal High Court in Lagos has convicted 11 Indian sailors and their merchant vessel, MV Aruna Hulya, over the trafficking of 31.5 kilograms of cocaine into Nigeria and imposed fines and restitution totalling about $6 million.

The conviction came barely six months after operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency arrested the crew and seized the vessel following the discovery of the illicit drug at the Apapa seaport in Lagos.

The cocaine was intercepted by NDLEA operatives on January 2, 2026, during an inspection of the vessel at the GDNL terminal, Apapa Port, where 31.5kg of cocaine was found concealed in Hatch 3 of the ship, which had arrived from the Marshall Islands.

The vessel’s master, Sharma Shashi Bhushan, alongside 10 other crew members, was subsequently arraigned before Justice Joseph Aneke of the Federal High Court, Lagos, on a two-count charge in suit number FHC/L/56C/2026.

The other defendants are Bharati Manoj Kumar, Nevage Sandesh Suresh, Pandey Prashant, Nuttu Anand, Akash Babu, Nilesh Mukuno Bhalerad, Melethil Insaf Rahman, Barla Chantanya Krishna, Prabhasukhan Singu and Jai Parkash.

A statement on Thursday by the NDLEA’s spokesman, Femi Babafemi, said Justice Aneke adopted the plea bargain agreement entered into by the prosecution and the defence and convicted all 12 defendants under Section 25 of the NDLEA Act.

According to the terms of the judgment, each of the defendants was ordered to pay a fine of N100,000, the statutory penalty prescribed under the Act.

In addition, the vessel, MV Aruna Hulya, was ordered to pay restitution of $5.3 million to the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“After months before the court, the trial judge on Thursday 11th June 2026 delivered his ruling on plea bargain terms filed by the prosecution and defence in the case. As a result, all 12 defendants were convicted under Section 25 of the NDLEA Act and sentenced to pay the sum of 100,000 Naira each which is the penalty for the offence under the Act. ⁠In addition, the 1st defendant, which is the vessel, is to pay restitution to the Federal Republic of Nigeria in the sum of $5,300,000 or its equivalent in Naira, ” the judge was quoted as saying.

The court also directed the vessel’s three principal officers — Sharma Shashi Bhushan, Nilesh Mukuno Bhalerad and Melethil Insaf Rahman — to pay restitution of $100,000 each to the Federal Government.

The remaining crew members, listed as the fifth to twelfth defendants, were ordered to pay $50,000 each as restitution.

Reacting to the judgment, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), described the conviction as a strong warning to international drug trafficking syndicates.

He said, “This judgment is the third of its kind in recent times, following the convictions of foreign nationals and vessels on similar charges.

“Let it be known that these are not coincidences; they are the direct result of deliberate, intelligence-led operations by our officers who remain vigilant at every port of entry.”

Marwa added that the ruling demonstrated that Nigeria would no longer serve as a transit route for illicit drugs.

“The NDLEA will not relent. Whether you come by air, land, or sea; whether you are a Nigerian or a foreign national, if you attempt to use our waters as a narcotics highway, you will face the full weight of Nigerian law.

“Our courts have spoken, and we will continue to give them reason to speak. The war against drug trafficking is one we are winning, and we intend to keep it that way,” he stated.

The NDLEA boss also commended officers of the agency’s Apapa Strategic Command for detecting the cocaine consignment concealed within the cargo section of the vessel and praised the Directorate of Prosecution and Legal Services for securing the conviction.