National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, has arrested a businessman, Ezemokwe Chukwuebuka, 44,for ingesting 53 wraps of cocaine at Port Harcourt International Airport, PHIA.
A statement yesterday in Abuja by its Director of Media, Mr Femi Babafemi, said the suspect was arrested while on his way to Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran.
Babafemi said the arrest came barely two weeks after NDLEA operatives at Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, MAKIA, Kano, intercepted a 60-year-old businessman, Chinedu Okigbo with 65 pellets of cocaine in his stomach.
He said Ezemokwe was arrested at the Port Harcourt airport on Saturday, June 7 while trying to board Qatar Airways flight QR1434 flying to Tehran in Iran via Doha.
According to him, after a body scan proved positive to ingestion of illicit drugs, he was placed on excretion observation.
“He expelled 53 wraps of cocaine in six excretions with a total weight of 1.172kg.
“The suspect claimed to have gone into the criminal trade two years ago, moving between the West African sub-region and Iran.”
Similarly, NDLEA operatives at Murtala Muhammed International Airport, MMIA, Ikeja, Lagos, in the early hours of Saturday, June 14, intercepted an Italy bound passenger, Edobor Ambrose on Air France flight.
Babafemi said the officers in collaboration with Aviation Security of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, FAAN, discovered drug consignments hidden in the luggage of the suspect.
This, he said was during baggage scanning at the tarmac, adding that the suspect was thereafter brought down from the aircraft for baggage identification.
He added that a thorough search of the bag led to the discovery of 14,410 pills of tramadol 225mg and 200mg concealed in winter jackets.
“In his statement, Ebodor said he lives in Italy where he was hired and sent on the all expense paid trip to Nigeria to courier the drug consignment to Milan, Italy for a fee of 2000 Euros.
Babafemi quoted the NDLEA Chairman, Brigadier-General Buba Marwa (rtd), as commending the officers and men of MMIA, PHIA and FAAN commands of the agency for the arrests and seizures of the past week.
Marwa praised their compatriots in all the commands across the country for pursuing a fair balance between drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction efforts.
