Operatives of the Nationwide Drug Legislation Enforcement Company (NDLEA) have arrested a 59-year-old businessman, Chijioke Nnanna Igbokwe, who later underwent emergency surgical procedure to take away 81 wraps of cocaine from his abdomen.
In response to the company’s spokesman, Femi Babafemi, Igbokwe was apprehended on the Murtala Muhammed Worldwide Airport (MMIA), Lagos, on January 26 in the course of the inward clearance of Ethiopian Airways passengers. A physique scan confirmed he had ingested illicit medication.
Investigations revealed that Igbokwe, who claims to be a clothes dealer in Lagos, had traveled to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on January 22, the place he swallowed the 81 wraps of cocaine a day later.
He then boarded a flight to Beirut, Lebanon, to ship the consignment for a price of $3,000.
Nevertheless, Lebanese authorities denied him entry for failing to satisfy the $2,000 minimal monetary requirement and deported him again to Addis Ababa.
Struggling to excrete the medication, Igbokwe returned to Lagos on January 25, the place he was arrested upon arrival. After 5 days in NDLEA custody, he managed to expel solely 24 pellets regardless of medical intervention. Resulting from well being problems, docs on the Lagos State College Instructing Hospital (LASUTH) carried out an exploratory laparotomy on January 30 to take away the remaining 57 pellets. In whole, NDLEA recovered 1.943 kilograms of cocaine from his abdomen.
NDLEA Intercepts 2,000kg of Ghanaian Loud at Lagos Seaside
In a separate operation, NDLEA officers intercepted a 2,000-kilogram cargo of Ghanaian Loud, a pressure of hashish, at Lekki Seaside, Lagos, on January 29. Two suspects, Sunday Awoyede and Christopher Cletus, have been arrested whereas trying to load the illicit cargo right into a truck. One other suspect, Lawal Idris Olasunkanmi, was apprehended the identical day with 55 kilograms of skunk throughout a raid in Mushin, Lagos.
Nationwide Drug Sensitization Efforts
Throughout the nation, NDLEA intensified its Struggle In opposition to Drug Abuse (WADA) marketing campaign by way of sensitization applications in colleges, workplaces, and conventional establishments. Among the many key occasions have been lectures at Grand Mild Mannequin College, Akwa Ibom; Neighborhood Grammar College, Oyo; and Federal Authorities School, Sokoto. The company’s Kogi Command additionally carried out a WADA advocacy go to to the Attah of Igala, HRH Mathew Opaluwa Oguche.
Marwa Warns Drug Traffickers
NDLEA Chairman, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), recommended the officers for his or her vigilance, notably in dealing with Igbokwe’s case and intercepting the hashish consignment. He reiterated that drug traffickers not solely endanger others but additionally danger their very own lives. Marwa additionally applauded NDLEA’s ongoing sensitization efforts to curb drug abuse in communities nationwide.
