Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a 59-year-old businessman, Chijioke Nnanna Igbokwe, who later underwent emergency surgery to remove 81 wraps of cocaine from his stomach.
According to the agency’s spokesman, Femi Babafemi, Igbokwe was apprehended at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, on January 26 during the inward clearance of Ethiopian Airlines passengers. A body scan confirmed he had ingested illicit drugs.
Investigations revealed that Igbokwe, who claims to be a clothing trader in Lagos, had traveled to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on January 22, where he swallowed the 81 wraps of cocaine a day later.
He then boarded a flight to Beirut, Lebanon, to deliver the consignment for a fee of $3,000.
However, Lebanese authorities denied him entry for failing to meet the $2,000 minimum financial requirement and deported him back to Addis Ababa.
Struggling to excrete the drugs, Igbokwe returned to Lagos on January 25, where he was arrested upon arrival. After five days in NDLEA custody, he managed to expel only 24 pellets despite medical intervention. Due to health complications, doctors at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) performed an exploratory laparotomy on January 30 to remove the remaining 57 pellets. In total, NDLEA recovered 1.943 kilograms of cocaine from his stomach.
