The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, has arrested a 44-year-old businessman, Ezemokwe Chukwuebuka, for ingesting 53 wraps of cocaine at the Port Harcourt International Airport, PHIA.
In a statement released on Sunday in Abuja, NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Mr. Femi Babafemi, said the suspect was apprehended while en route Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran.
Ezemokwe was arrested on Saturday, June 7, at the Port Harcourt airport while attempting to board Qatar Airways flight QR1434, heading to Tehran via Doha.
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A body scan revealed he had ingested drugs, and he was placed under excretion observation, during which he expelled 53 wraps of cocaine across six sessions, totalling 1.172 kilograms.
The suspect admitted to engaging in drug trafficking for the past two years, operating between West Africa and Iran.
Similarly, NDLEA operatives at Murtala Muhammed International Airport, MMIA, Ikeja, Lagos, intercepted another suspect, Edobor Ambrose, on an Air France flight bound for Italy on Saturday, June 14.
Working in collaboration with Aviation Security of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, FAAN, officers discovered drug consignments in Ambrose’s luggage during baggage scanning on the tarmac.
The suspect was removed from the aircraft for further checks. A detailed search revealed 14,410 tramadol pills, 225 mg and 200 mg, concealed in winter jackets.
Ambrose claimed he was hired and sponsored on an all-expense-paid trip from Italy to courier the drugs to Milan for a fee of 2,000 euros.
Babafemi added that two weeks earlier, NDLEA operatives at Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, intercepted a 60-year-old businessman, Chinedu Okigbo, who had ingested 65 pellets of cocaine.
NDLEA Chairman, retired Brigadier General Buba Marwa, praised the agency’s teams at MMIA, PHIA, FAAN, and other commands for their dedication and recent successes.
He commended their ongoing efforts in balancing drug supply reduction with drug demand reduction across the country.
NAN
