The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has apprehended a 44-year-old businessman, Ezemokwe Chukwuebuka, for allegedly ingesting 53 wraps of cocaine at the Port Harcourt International Airport (PHIA). In a statement issued on Sunday in Abuja by the NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Mr. Femi Babafemi, the suspect was arrested while attempting to board a Qatar Airways flight to Tehran, Iran.
This arrest comes just two weeks after NDLEA operatives at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA) intercepted 60-year-old businessman Chinedu Okigbo with 65 pellets of cocaine in his stomach. Ezemokwe was reportedly detained on Saturday, June 7, during a routine check before his flight. A body scan confirmed the presence of illicit substances, leading to his placement under excretion observation.
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NDLEA Intercepts Drugs Worth Billions in Rivers, Other States
“This was during which he expelled 53 wraps of cocaine in six excretions with a total weight of 1.172kg,” the statement revealed. The suspect allegedly admitted to engaging in drug trafficking for two years, frequently traveling between West Africa and Iran.
In related news, at the Port Harcourt Ports in Onne, Rivers State, NDLEA operatives intercepted a shipment containing 157,800 bottles of codeine-based syrup, valued at over N1.1 billion. The drugs were hidden behind 257 cartons of ceramic sanitary wares. Three suspects—Friday Achibong Joseph (47), Abraham Anthony Willy (21), and Utibe David Okon (24)—were arrested in connection with the seizure.
