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 on Sunday, the NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, said the suspect was arrested while on his way to Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran.

Mr Babafemi said the arrest came barely two weeks after operatives at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA), Kano, intercepted a 60-year-old businessman, Chinedu Okigbo, with 65 pellets of cocaine in his stomach.

He said Mr Ezemokwe was arrested at the Port Harcourt airport on Saturday, June 7, while trying to board Qatar Airways flight QR1434 to Tehran in Iran via Doha.

According to him, after a body scan proved positive for ingestion of illicit drugs, he was placed on excretion observation.

“This was during which he expelled 53 wraps of cocaine in six excretions with a total weight of 1.172kg.

“The suspect claimed to have gone into the criminal trade two years ago, moving between the West African sub-region and Iran,” Mr Babafemi said.

Similarly, NDLEA operatives at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos, in the early hours of Saturday, June 14, intercepted an Italy-bound passenger, Edobor Ambrose, on an Air France flight.

Mr Babafemi said the NDLEA officers, in collaboration with the Aviation Security of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), discovered drug consignments hidden in the luggage of the suspect.

He said this was during baggage scanning at the tarmac, adding that the suspect was brought down from the aircraft for baggage identification.

Mr Babafemi stated that a thorough search of the bag led to the discovery of 14,410 pills of tramadol 225 mg and 200 mg concealed in winter jackets.

“In his statement, Ebodor said he lives in Italy, where he was hired and sent on the all all-expense-paid trip to Nigeria to courier the drug consignments to Milan, Italy for a fee of 2000 Euros,” he stated.

Mr Babafemi quoted the NDLEA chairman, retired Brig.-Gen. Buba Marwa, as commending the officers and men of MMIA, PHIA, and FAAN commands of the agency for the arrests and seizures of the past week.

Mr Marwa praised their compatriots in all the commands across the country for pursuing a fair balance between their drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction efforts.

(NAN)