Crime
NDLEA Arrests Businessman With 81 Wraps Of Cocaine Stuck In His Stomach
He was immediately placed under NDLEA custody for excretion observation.
Ikeja, Lagos State – A 59-year-old businessman, Chijioke Nnanna Igbokwe, has undergone an emergency surgery to remove 57 out of 81 pellets of cocaine stuck in his stomach after ingesting the illicit substance in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Igbokwe was apprehended by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the arrival hall of Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, during routine passenger clearance for an Ethiopian Airlines flight on Sunday, January 26, 2025.
According to a statement released by NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, the suspect was subjected to a body scan, which confirmed the presence of illicit drugs in his system.
He was immediately placed under NDLEA custody for excretion observation.
Further investigations revealed that Igbokwe, who claims to be a clothing trader at Arena Market, Oshodi, had left Lagos for Addis Ababa on January 22.
He reportedly ingested the 81 wraps of cocaine on January 23 before boarding a flight to Beirut, Lebanon, where he intended to deliver the drugs for a fee of $3,000.
The statement read, “Upon his arrival in Beirut, he said he was refused entry because he had less than $2,000, the amount required to grant him entry.
“He was then deported to Addis Ababa where he attempted excreting the illicit drugs but could not.
“He thereafter proceeded to Lagos on Saturday 25th January with the consignment in his bowel. He was however arrested upon his arrival at the Lagos airport by NDLEA officers on 26th January.
According to Babafemi, after five days under excretion observation, he could only expel 24 pellets following initial medical intervention at the Agency’s medical facility and the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) Ikeja.
“With the clock ticking for him and the complication of other underlining medical conditions, the suspect was eventually admitted at the tertiary facility where he had to undergo exploratory laparotomy to extract the remaining 57 wraps of cocaine stuck in his stomach after his wife and brother endorsed the necessary consent forms on Thursday 30th January.
“In all, a total of 81 pellets of the Class A drug with a gross weight of 1.943 kilograms were recovered from his stomach,” Babafemi said.
