The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) says a 59-year-old businessman, Chijioke Nnanna Igbokwe, has undergone a surgery, exploratory laparotomy, to let out 57 out of 81 pellets of cocaine stuck in his stomach after seven days of ingesting the illicit substance in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Femi Babafemi, Igbokwe, was detained at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport during the inbound clearance of passengers on Ethiopian Airlines on Sunday, January 26, 2025, according to a statement from the NDLEA spokesperson.
He was immediately taken into NDLEA custody for excretion observation and was soon taken for a body scan that revealed illicit drugs in his system.
READ ALSO:  , NDLEA Intercepts Loud, Cannabis Hidden In Duvet At Lagos Airport
Igbokwe, who claims to work in the Oshodi area of Lagos, allegedly owned a clothing store, flew from Lagos on January 22 to Addis Ababa where he ingested 81 wraps of cocaine the following day on January 23 and flew to Beirut, Lebanon to deliver the illegal consignment for a fee of $3, 000.
He claimed that when he arrived in Beirut, he was denied entry because he had less than $2, 000, the amount that allowed him to enter. After that, he was deported to Addis Ababa, where he attempted to get the illegal drugs out of a dumpster but was unsuccessful.
On Saturday, January 25, he drove to Lagos with the consignment in his bowels. He was, however, arrested upon his arrival at Lagos airport by NDLEA officers on 26th January.
Following initial medical treatment at the Agency’s medical facility and the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) Ikeja, he was only able to expel 24 pellets after five days of observation during excretion.
After his wife and brother approved the necessary consent forms on Thursday, January 30th, the suspect was eventually admitted to the tertiary facility where he had to have his stomach examined for the complications of other underlining medical conditions and the clock ticking for him.
Babafemi added that in total, the NDLEA recovered 81 cocaine pellets, weighing 1.943 kilograms, from Igbokwe’s body.
In another operation, operatives of the NDLEA intercepted a consignment of 2, 000 kilograms of Ghanaian Loud, a strain of cannabis produced in Ghana, at Lekki beach, where two suspects: Sunday Awoyede and Christopher Cletus attempted loading them into a truck.
The suspects, the skunk shipment and the van were immediately taken into custody, according to the NDLEA.
Source: Channels TV
Leave a Reply