NDLEA nabs ex-convict with cocaine worth N4.6bn
By Adeyanju Esther
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has detained Christian Ogbuji, an ex-convict, for importing 817 wraps of cocaine weighing 19.40 kg, valued at approximately N4.6 billion. The seizure occurred at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA).
This was contained in a statement released by NDLEA spokesman Femi Babafemi on Tuesday in Abuja.
Babafemi noted that the arrest occurred just 16 months after Ogbuji was previously arrested and convicted for ingesting 93 pellets of cocaine.
He stated that the 48-year-old businessman was first apprehended at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA) in Abuja on Wednesday, May 10, 2023.
He explained that this arrest occurred upon his arrival from Uganda via Addis Ababa on Ethiopian Airlines flight ET 951, where he was found to have ingested 93 pellets of cocaine weighing a total of 1.986 kg.
Babafemi stated that the suspect was arraigned before Federal High Court 12 in Abuja, presided over by Justice Mobolaji Olajuwon, in case number FHC/ABJ/CR/192/2023, and was convicted on July 13, 2023.
He mentioned that Ogbuji was sentenced to two years in prison but given the option to pay a fine of N3 million, which he paid, leading to his release.
He, however, said that the court ordered the forfeiture of the seized 1.986 kilograms of cocaine, as well as Ogbuji’s international passport, 14 US dollars, and 9,000 Uganda shillings found at the time of his arrest.
Ogbuji was arrested again at the Lagos airport on Wednesday, September 18, during the inward clearance of Ethiopian Airlines flight passengers arriving from Addis Ababa.
During a security screening, NDLEA operatives searched Ogbuji’s black travel bag at the joint examination table but initially found nothing suspicious.
However, in a suspicious act, Ogbuji returned to the carousel area and discreetly added a black backpack, which he had previously left on the conveyor belt, to the cleared luggage.
Vigilant NDLEA officers intercepted Ogbuji before he exited the arrival hall and conducted a secondary search, uncovering large wraps of excreted cocaine hidden inside the backpack, concealed within the original black travel bag.
