NDLEA arrested 14 drug suspects at Lagos airport in 18 months

Shola Adekola,Lagos - 19.02.2009

the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has, in the last one and a half months, arrested 14 suspects at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, with 77.307 kilogrammes of drugs.

Two of the suspects were caught with 59.547 kilogrammes g of cannabis, one with 1.827 kilogrammes of heroin and the remaining 11 with 15.933 kilogrammes of cocaine.

The estimated street value of the drugs is about N60 million.

According to the NDLEA Airport Commander,Victor Cole-Showers, eight of the suspects were caught in February.

He gave their names as Emmanuel Chidi Ogbuji (45), Mezue James Obinna (30), Eluma Ifeanyi (30) and Okoro Igwe Onwuka (35).

Others are Onum Michael (36), Anaeto Harrison Ugochukwu (39), Obiora Chukwudiebere Celestine (46) and David Monteiro (35).

All of them were found to have ingested drugs on their way to various destinations in Europe.

The NDLEA’s image maker, Mitchelle Ofoyeju, however, said “if the anxiety being expressed by one of the suspects, Michael, is anything to go by, he may just be the next drug suspect to be operated upon this year to evacuate cocaine from his stomach.”

Michael, who hails from Ohafia Local Government Area of Abia State, was arrested on February 6 for testing positive to drug ingestion and allegedly confessed to have ingested 78 wraps of drugs which he was to deliver in Hamburg, Germany, for a fee of 3,000 euros.

He was said to have excreted 77 wraps of cocaine, remaining one inside him.