A 47-year-old man, Odili Onyekwere, who attempted to export 270 grammes of cocaine to Madagascar, was on Monday nabbed at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos state.
Onyekwere was arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, during the outward screening of passengers on a Kenyan Airways flight to Ivato International Airport, Antananarivo, Madagascar.
The Rivers State-born suspect, during interrogation, said he went into drug trafficking out of frustration and his inability to provide for his family.
In his confession, Onyekwere, who successfully excreted 25 wraps of cocaine, which he ingested, said: “I am married with two children and I sell shoes in Lome, Togo. As a result of the economic downturn, my capital kept depreciating until I lost everything.
“It was the frustration of not being able to provide for my wife and two children that made me go into smuggling of cocaine.
“It is my first time. They promised to pay me $1,000, which is over N400,000, going by the present exchange rate,” the father of two added.
The Chairman/Chief Executive of the agency, Muhammad Mustapha Abdallah, said with the use of latest technology in drug control, the agency would continue to disappoint those hoping to get rich quick from drug trafficking.
Confirming the arrest to newsmen, the NDLEA Commander at the Lagos Airport, Ahmadu Garba, said: “This is the first arrest and seizure in the year of a passenger heading to Madagascar from this airport.
“He is cooperating with our team of investigators and the case will soon be charged to court.”
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