Young Nigerian swallows ₦360m cocaine for ₦750,000 reward

Officials of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have intercepted a suspected drug trafficker, Chigbogu Obiora, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos.

Director, Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi in a statement disclosed that Obiora excreted 97 wraps of cocaine worth N360 million.

The 47-year-old trafficker was nabbed on Sunday, April, 25 during the inward clearance of Ethiopian Airline.

Obiora arrived in Lagos onboard the airline from Entebbe, Uganda via Addis-Ababa, Ethiopia.

MMIA Commander, Ahmadu Garba said Obiora was taken for body machine scan and the result was positive for ingestion of substances.

The suspect was promptly moved to the NDLEA excretion and observation facility.

Garba said barely an hour after, Obiora excreted 31 wraps of cocaine weighing 500 grammes and another 47 wraps (750 grammes) in the evening of the same day.

The next day, 19 wraps (300 grammes) were excreted, bringing the total to 97 wraps (1.55kg).

The NDLEA spokesman said that under interrogation, Obiora claimed he was promised $1,500 to move the drug.

“I opted for the ‘deal’ because I needed money. I did it so that I will be capable of feeding my family”, he was quoted as saying.

“I was living in Madagascar but due to the COVID-19 and the lockdown in the country, I cannot return to my place of work.

“I have never met the real owner of the drug. I don’t know him, they contacted me on the phone and asked if I can do the business,’’ Obiora claimed.