Businessman Undergoes Surgery to Extract 57 Wraps of Cocaine Stuck in Stomach
Deported from Lebanon 7 Days After Ingesting Illicit Drug, Arrested at MMIA
A 59-year-old businessman, Chijioke Nnanna Igbokwe, has undergone an exploratory laparotomy surgery to remove 57 out of 81 pellets of cocaine that were stuck in his stomach after ingesting the illicit substance in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Igbokwe, who was arrested at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos, had arrived on Ethiopian Airlines flight from Addis Ababa on Sunday, January 25, 2025. During the inward clearance of passengers, NDLEA operatives conducted a body scan that revealed drugs in his system.
A statement from NDLEA’s Director of Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, confirmed that Igbokwe was immediately taken into custody for observation. Investigations revealed that Igbokwe, who claimed to be in the cloth business at Oshodi, Lagos, had departed Lagos on January 22 for Addis Ababa. There, on January 23, he ingested 81 wraps of cocaine, intending to deliver them to Beirut, Lebanon, for a fee of $3,000.
However, upon arriving in Beirut, Igbokwe was denied entry for having less than the required $2,000 and was deported back to Addis Ababa. There, he attempted to excrete the drugs but was unsuccessful and continued his journey to Lagos on January 25. Upon arrival, he was arrested by NDLEA operatives on January 26.
Despite undergoing initial medical intervention at the NDLEA’s medical facility and Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Igbokwe was unable to expel all the drugs after five days of observation. Given the severity of the situation and his deteriorating health, Igbokwe underwent surgery on January 30 to remove the remaining 57 pellets of cocaine from his stomach. In total, 81 pellets, weighing 1.943 kilograms, were recovered.
Meanwhile, NDLEA operatives intercepted a large consignment of 2,000 kilograms of Ghanaian Loud (a strain of cannabis) at Lekki Beach on January 29. The drugs were being loaded onto a truck by two suspects, Sunday Awoyede and Christopher Cletus, who were promptly arrested along with the consignment and vehicle. A third suspect, Lawal Idris Olasunkanmi, was arrested the same day with 55 kg of skunk during a raid in Lagos’s Mushin area.
In addition to their operations, NDLEA commands nationwide have continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) campaign, delivering sensitization lectures and advocacy visits to schools, worship centers, and communities. Recent engagements include visits to schools in Akwa Ibom, Oyo, Lagos, Imo, and Sokoto states, as well as an advocacy visit to the palace of the Attah of Igala in Kogi State.
The Chairman/CEO of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), commended the officers at MMIA for their vigilance in handling Igbokwe’s case and praised the Lagos State Strategic Command for preventing the large drug consignment from entering the country. He also lauded the ongoing WADA advocacy efforts across the country, emphasizing the importance of drug supply and demand reduction in the agency’s fight against illicit drug trafficking.
