2 Men Charged in International Drug Smuggling Scheme That Recruited Women via Online Ads

A patch is seen on the shoulder of a Canada Border Services Agency officer's uniform in Tsawwassen, B.C., on Dec. 16, 2022. The Canadian Press/Darryl Dyck

The RCMP has charged two men in connection with an international criminal scheme that recruited women through online classified advertisements to smuggle drugs out of Canada via Toronto Pearson International Airport.

Following a nine-month investigation, the RCMP and the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) have charged 48-year-old Charles Adewoye of Toronto and 25-year-old Shamaarke Jafar Ismail of the United Kingdom in connection with a drug smuggling operation that officials intercepted and stopped before an additional 29 kilograms of cannabis could be shipped out of Canada, the CBSA said in a Dec. 22 press release.

The investigation began after Nigerian authorities arrested two Canadian women for trying to smuggle cannabis into the country, officials said. The women had been recruited through classified ads on the online platform “LeoList” that promised up to $20,000 for transporting illicit drugs into and out of Canada. The ads targeted women aged 20 to 65.

“The RCMP and CBSA are urging the public to exercise caution when responding to online ads for job offers that promise large sums of money with little explanation and require international travel,” the CBSA said.

Adewoye was charged with the exportation of cannabis and conspiracy to commit an indictable offense. Ismail faces three charges, including the possession of cannabis for the purpose of export, conspiracy to commit an indictable offense, and resisting or obstructing a peace officer.

The two men were arrested and later released on bail, the CBSA said. They are scheduled to appear in court on Jan. 16, 2026.

The CBSA did not identify the two women arrested by Nigerian authorities. However, in a widely reported case last year, Adrienne Munju, a passenger from Ontario, was arrested by Nigeria’s National Drug Law Enforcement Agency at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport on Oct. 3, 2024, for attempting to import more than 30 kilograms of cannabis into the country, according to Nigerian news outlet The Punch.

Manju, who pleaded guilty, said she had been recruited through an online platform to smuggle the drug for $10,000 to Lagos, Nigeria, and accepted the offer because she needed the money, the report says.

In another case involving contraband cannabis, the CBSA last month announced the seizure of 2,723 kilograms of the drug in Quebec destined for the U.K., with part hidden among bundles of lumber and another portion found in a container with boxes of paper towels.

The border agency seized more than 39 million grams of cannabis in the first half of 2025, according to agency statistics.

Canada has invested $1.3 billion to strengthen border security and curb the flow of illicit drugs, particularly fentanyl. The border plan was announced amid U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats to impose tariffs on Canada, citing concerns over border security.